What is a Scientific Poster?

• It is a large representative poster that communicates your research outcomes to an audience.

• The poster should be well organized and concise enough for the viewer to read it in less than 10 minutes.

Creating a poster • Choose the correct software ▫ PowerPoint, InDesign, Illustrator, among others. ▫ PowerPoint is the most common used software

and there are many free templates available on the Internet.

• Poster dimensions and layouts ▫ Most conferences have predetermined dimensions

for the posters, as well as the orientation (portrait or landscape).

▫ Common dimensions for posters are 36” x 42”, 42” x 48”, 42” x 52”, among others.

Sequence • When creating a poster think of it as a story. • Every story needs a logical sequence. • Try going in columns from left to right and up to

down.

The Abstract is an exception that goes in line with the title.

Sample Poster

Main Parts of a Poster

• Title • Abstract • Introduction • Materials/Methods • Results • References • Acknowledgments • Further information

Title

Title

• The title is what grabs the attention of the viewer. Because of this, it should be catchy in order to “capture” the passersby.

• It should convey the “issue,” the approach and the system.

• It should have no more than one or two lines.

Title

Investigation Title

Authors’ names including mentors Affiliations

Affiliation Logos

Parts of the Title • Investigation title ▫ It should have the biggest font size of the poster.

The title should be readable from 15-20 feet away. ▫ Bold and not all caps.

• Authors’ names & affiliations ▫ Should be grouped together. ▫ If you have the space use first names.

• Affiliation logos ▫ Include the logos of your research site, affiliated

university and any other necessary logo.

Abstract

Abstract

• The abstract should contain Background, Research Question and Results.

• Depending on the rules of the poster session you may or may not be asked to include this section on your poster.

• If you are to include it keep it brief and precise. • The abstract should be a very brief summary of

your investigation and the purpose of this investigation.

Introduction

Introduction

• In this part you get your viewer interested in the question your research proposes.

• Place your issue in a context and then “pitch” an interesting hypothesis.

• Although hard to do, try to limit the text in this section. You do not want to overwhelm the reader.

• This is a wonderful section to add a couple of pictures to get the reader excited.

Introduction

Title

Content

Pictures

Picture Description

Materials and Methods

Materials and Methods

• Briefly describe experimental equipment and methods, but NOT in a very detailed manner.

• In this section you explained in a very concise way how you reached the conclusion of your research.

• It is optional to use graphs here, but they are usually reserved for the results section.

Results

Results

• This will be the largest section of the poster. • In this section you will explain the results of

your hard work. • Start by mentioning whether the experiment

worked or not. (Should be the first paragraph) • After this, present the data analysis that

addresses the results of the research. • Use graphs and/or images to support your data

analysis.

Results

Title

Results

Data Graphs and Description

Future Experiments

Future Experiments

• If you feel there can be additional experiments with your research, feel free to add them to this section.

• This is an optional part and only applies to certain researches.

References

References

• In this section you will add all the references that helped you do your research.

• Use reliable sources that back up your research. • Cite them in the appropriate format, according

to the symposium or activity you are going to present in. (Usually APA format)

• Do not use only Internet refernces.

Acknowledgements

Acknowledgements

• Thank individuals for specific contributions to the project.

• Do not lapse too much information onto this section.

• Do not forget funding acknowledgments. • Do not make references to religious preferences.

Do’s • Leave breathing space around your text • Plain fonts • Be consistent in text size, color and type in the

whole poster. • Whenever possible, use lists rather than blocks

of sentences. • Keep your posters visual (Images say more than

words). • Use high resolution pictures that can be seen at a

fair distance.

Don’ts

• Make your poster too long. (“Less is more”) • Use all caps anywhere in the poster. • Give your graphs color background. • No more than 2 or 3 colors in your poster. • Dark font on light background or vice versa.

Your poster

• Your poster is the result of your hard work so be very detailed with it.

• Express yourself in the poster but be sure that the “expression” is readable by your audience.

• There are no specific rules on posters, just some guidelines so be sure to include your own style into it.

• Above else have fun doing it.

Scientific Paper

Scientific Paper

Resources

• http://people.eku.edu/ritchisong/posterpres.html • http://www.ncsu.edu/project/posters/examples • http://www.swarthmore.edu/NatSci/cpurrin1/po

steradvice.htm • http://www.sfedit.net • http://www.sciencespot.net/Media/scimethodwk

st.pdf • http://srdc.suagm.edu

Ana G. Méndez University System Vice-Presidency for Planning and Academic Affairs Student Research Development Center P.O. Box 21150 San Juan, P.R. 00928-1150 Tel.(787)766-1717 Ext.6000 Fax.(787)751-5386 E-mail:um_jarratia@suagm.edu Web Page: http//srdc.suagm.edu

Juan F. Arratia, Ph.D