I’ve recently been working with the Monash University Institute of Graduate Research to provide training to entrants of the 3-minute thesis competition. This is a research communication competition developed by the University of Queensland. Entrants have 3 minutes to essentially “sell” their PhD to a lay but intelligent audience. What a fantastic idea!
As I said to the participants during the training, at the end of the day, this is the ultimate aim of research: to be able to capture the attention of policy makers, the media and the general public and more often than not (particularly with our increasingly short attention spans), 3 minutes is all you’ll have to make your audience want to know more.
So, my advice to all 3MT entrants: This is about your research not about any ol research, so make it your own, tell a story, put yourself in your story and take us on your journey of discovery. Good luck to all 3MT competitors!