SCHOLARS POSTER SESSION
Trabant University
Center
Multipurpose Rooms A, B
& C
Sponsored By: Undergraduate
Research Program
Instructions for Poster Preparation
Poster Board Dimensions: At the Poster Session, your poster will be mounted on a cardboard or foam poster board. These poster boards come in two sizes: small (30 by 40 inches) and large (36 by 48 inches). Please design your poster to fit one of the two sizes of poster board. Sometimes you will need to trim your poster in order to fit the poster boards. Please measure and do this before the Poster Session.
Poster Construction: There are two ways to construct a poster; you should
talk with your research advisor about which is the best method and most
commonly used within your field.
1. As a single page: Many posters are created as a
single sheet of paper, the dimension of the poster board, using a PowerPoint
slide. This style looks very professional and is becoming the standard among
many fields.
Posters can be printed at 116 Pearson Hall (since the computing site in the
Basement of Smith Hall is closed for renovations this Spring).
They prefer Powerpoint; you can change the slide dimensions to the size of your
poster. One side can be a maximum of 41.45 inches and the other side can vary.
They charge about $6/foot. Commerical business like Kinko’s, etc. may
also be able to print the poster.
2. As multiple, small pages: Posters can also be created by using multiple 8.5
by 11 pieces of paper as poster units. These sheets are offset by construction
paper of a constrasting color between the poster unit and the poster board.
As you design your poster, keep in mind that your audience will be standing a
few feet away to read and understand your poster. You should choose fonts that
are easy to read and large enough to be read from 3-4 feet away. Arrange
information so that the movement of the eye is natural, i.e. down the columns
or along the rows. Your research advisor and other students can help review
your poster for clarity.
Recommended fonts are Times New Roman, Arial, or Helvetica, and at least 20
point. Headings should be bold and at least 30 point font.
Poster Content:
•
Your poster can use text, graphs, and figures to describe your work.
•
You should work closely with your research advisor to design your poster. Designing a poster is part of the research
process; you are learning how to share your research with others.
•
Your poster will have a heading consisting of (1) the poster title, (2) your
name, (3) your research advisor’s name, and (4) your department.
•
Your poster must include the following sections: (1) objective or purpose
of your research, (2) your methodology,
(3) your results, (4) your conclusions. If you have not yet achieved results,
you should explain the status of your project.
Keep in mind that there will be over a
hundred other posters in the room, so try to make yours visually
interesting. The audience will include
new Scholars and other lay people who may not be familiar with your field, so
think carefully about the words you are using (especially jargon) and the basic
assumptions you are making.
This website offers instructions and
suggestions for preparing posters: http://depts.washington.edu/mphpract/ppposter.html
(The “Design and Layout” section includes specific instructions for
using PowerPoint to make your poster).
Supplies: At the Poster Session you
will be provided with an easel, poster board, clips
for attaching your poster, name tag, and poster number. Pushpins will also be available if needed.
The Day of the Poster Session
Arrive in Trabant
Multipurpose Rooms A, B, & C no later than 12:30 to set up your
poster, though you can start setting up anytime after 12:00. Once you arrive in Trabant with your poster,
check in to find your number, then set up your poster
on the appropriate easel. Posters should
be clipped to the boards, and the poster number needs to be attached to the
upper right corner, so it is easily visible.
Your poster must
be set up and ready by 1:30.
Attendees and guests will start arriving to view the posters.
During the Poster
Session – from 2:00 to 4:30 – you need to stand by your
poster, wearing your name tag, and ready to explain your research and answer
questions. As attendees visit your
poster, be prepared to give a short presentation of your work (no more than
several minutes). Most likely, you will repeat this description several times as
attendees pass through.
To allow you, the
presenters, to look at the rest of the posters while still mantaining the
integrity of the Poster Session, from 3:30-4:00 presenters with an odd numbered
poster may walk around the Poster Session.
By 4:00 odd-numbered presenters need to return to the posters. From 4:00-4:30 the even-numbered presenters
can leave their posters to walk around the Session.
The Poster Session
will end at 4:30. You can begin
taking down your poster at this time. Do
not take your poster down before 4:30.
There are still guests and visitors at the Poster Session who will want
to look at your poster and ask you questions.
If you have any
questions or concerns about the Poster Session, email
Samples of posters
from the 2007 Annual Scholars Poster Session follow.
For
further information, please contact - 831-8995 - Undergraduate Research
Program,
12 W. Delaware Avenue
e-mail: UndergradResearch@udel.edu
