12 Preparing for Conferences
Planning Your Presentation
Once your abstract has been accepted to a conference, it is time to begin thinking about how you are going to communicate your work. Disciplinary norms about visual aids you may include will vary, but we suggest outlining your presentation before creating a visual PowerPoint accompaniment; this will help you develop a natural flow and progression for your work, unhindered by a more segmented, imposed external structure.
In outlining your work, consider the amount of time you have been allotted and the audience you will be presenting to. Are they generalists? Are they specialists? What degree of fluency can you expect with regard to their understanding of your methods, your theoretical framework or the subject matter you are discussing? Although the focus of your presented work should always skew towards your findings and analysis, the decisions you make about the depth of your discussion of important background information should reflect what you expect your audience to know. If you do decide to be more superficial in your discussion of one part of your presentation, offer to answer more specific questions during the question and answer period. Coming prepared with additional “appendix slides” about this information can be one way of mitigating nerves.
Recommended Resources:
Ten Simple Rules for Making Good Oral Presentations by Philip E Bourne in PlOS Computational Biology
Designing Your Poster
Although creating your poster from scratch can feel daunting, online resources that outline the mechanics of creating a poster and key design principles are invaluable. Begin your preparations by identifying the key points from your research to be included in your final product, and consider different ways of ordering and presenting this information to emphasize the aspects of your work that are most notable or important.
Academic conferences each dictate their own requirements for poster formatting so be sure to check size requirements at the beginning of your design process. While many free and paid poster design programs and templates can be found online (Canva, Design Cap), PowerPoint offers a familiar interface for many that can be used to create posters to suit virtually all contexts.
In planning the timing of your work, be sure to account for time for feedback and printing; circulate a draft to all co-authors well-ahead of your conference for their suggestions and sign-off. While some departments may offer poster printing to graduate students at a reduced cost, classmates or colleagues may be able to suggest cheap alternatives in the community if this option is not available to you. Plan to finish and print your poster at least a week ahead of your conference to avoid extra costs associated with rush-printing. The cost of printing your poster should be eligible for reimbursement through departmental funding.
Recommended Resources:
How to design an award-winning conference poster by the London School of Economics Impact of Social Sciences Blog
Ten Simple Rules for a Good Poster Presentation by Thomas C Erren and Philip E Bourne in PlOS Computational Biology
Poster presentations and Presenting Numerical Data by the Office of Student Learning Development at the University of Leicester
Creating a Research Poster in PowerPoint by the Department of Medical Graphics and Photography at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center