The Graduate School at UConn invites you to apply for and participate in the second annual Three-Minute Thesis (3MT®) and Graduate Student Showcase. This event celebrates the impact, creativity, and purpose behind graduate students’ work through brief, engaging presentations designed for a general audience. The showcase will take place on Wednesday, October 7, 2026, from 8:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. in the North Reading Room of the Wilbur Cross Building and is open to degree-seeking graduate students from all UConn campuses. 

The goal of the event is to provide eligible graduate students with an opportunity to gain experience communicating the significance of their work to a non-specialist audience in three minutes or less. Prior to the event, participants will have the opportunity to attend two presentation workshops, as outlined in the table below. 

Timeline: 

Eligibility Criteria: 

• Category 1: All Master's degrees; Professional and clinical doctoral degrees 
• Category 2: Arts, Humanities, and Social Science doctoral degrees (PhD candidates only) 
• Category 3: STEM doctoral degrees (PhD candidates only) 

Please note:

Students must be enrolled in a degree-seeking graduate program during the Fall 2026 semester to participate in the competition. While students from both thesis-based and non-thesis-based programs are eligible to compete and win at the UConn level, only students enrolled in thesis-based programs are eligible to advance to the national and international Three-Minute Thesis (3MT®) competitions. We encourage all eligible graduate students, regardless of program type, to apply and participate in the UConn 3MT® and Graduate Student Showcase competition.  The Graduate School will also host a poster competition during the Spring 2027 semester. While the poster competition is open to all graduate students, those who may not be eligible to participate in the Fall 2026 3MT® and Graduate Student Showcase competition are especially encouraged to apply. Additional details about the Spring 2027 poster competition will be shared as they become available. 

To participate in Categories 2 or 3 above: 

• The applicant must be a doctoral student enrolled in a program with a dissertation requirement. 
• The applicant must be an active student when they apply and compete. Applicants who complete their degree during the prior semester cannot compete. 
• The applicant must have documented successful completion of the General Examination by submitting the Report on the General Exam to the Office of the Registrar Degree Audit Team no later than Sept 30, 2026. 
• The applicant must have documented successful completion and submission of the dissertation proposal by submitting the Dissertation Proposal Form to the Office of the Registrar Degree Audit Team no later than Sept 30, 2026. 
• The Dissertation Proposal Form may be submitted to Degree Audit without approval from the Institutional Review Board (IRB)/Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC). The milestone will be posted as "in progress" and will meet the eligibility requirements for this application. IRB/IACUC approval must be submitted to Degree Audit once received to ensure that the milestone is updated to "complete" on the student record.

Prizes: 

Ten (10) finalists in each of the categories listed above will be selected to compete on Wednesday, Oct 7, 2026. Cash prizes, in the form of scholarship funds, will be awarded to the winners of each category, as well as to the overall winner. The institution's representative for the national and international 3MT competitions will also be determined based on the eligibility criteria outlined above (check please note). 

Application Process: 

Once applications go live on Monday, July 13, submit your application for the competition, ensuring that you answer all questions fully and to the best of your ability, using language that a general audience can understand. If selected to participate in the preliminary round, you must present your three-minute talk to a panel of judges between September 7 and September 18. This presentation may be conducted virtually or in person. From those who participate in the preliminary round, ten finalists from each category will be selected to compete in the final competition.  

Judging Criteria: To select applicants to advance on to the preliminary round in September, readers will use the following criteria: 

• Clarity and accessibility of the description of your work 
• Problem, question, or challenge addressed 
• Connection between your degree program and your future goals 
• Broader impact of your work 

Rules for the 3-minute presentation: 

• A single static PowerPoint slide is permitted (no slide transitions, animations or 'movement' of any description, the slide is to be presented from the beginning of the oration). 
• No additional electronic media (e.g. sound and video files) are permitted. 
• No additional props (e.g. costumes, musical instruments, laboratory equipment) are permitted. 
• Presentations are limited to 3 minutes maximum and competitors exceeding 3 minutes are disqualified. 
• Presentations are to be spoken word (e.g. no poems, raps, or songs). 
• Presentations are to commence from the stage. 
• Presentations are considered to have commenced when a presenter starts their presentation through movement or speech. 
• The competition is judged by a panel of professionals with wide ranging academic and non-academic expertise. 
• The decision of the adjudicating panel is final.