3 minute thesis umn

Inaugural 3-Minute Thesis Competition

For the first time, the Department of Psychology at the University of Minnesota is participating in the world-wide  3-Minute Thesis (3MT) competition . This competition, established by the University of Queensland in 2008, challenges research students to communicate the significance of their projects to a general audience in just three minutes, with the aid of a single, static slide.

On September 23, 2019, two psychology graduate students,  Chloe Huelsnitz  and  Caitlin Sisk,  presented their doctoral thesis research.  Patricia Frazier, PhD ,  Director of Graduate Studies and  Rachel Goller , Associate Director of Graduate Studies, initiated our involvement in this competition and introduced the event.

Sisk is advised by  Yuhong Jiang, PhD  in the  Cognitive and Brain Science  program. Her 3MT was titled " Managing Misdirections: Learning to look in all Right Places ."

Huelsnitz, who is advised by  Jeff Simpson, PhD  and  Alex Rothman, PhD  in the  Social Psychology  program presented on " The Effects of Social Control on Eating and Relational Behaviors in Romantic Relationships ."

Following the event, Frazier said, “We had a fantastic turnout and look forward to expanding the event next year, perhaps including our own internal competition for pre-thesis research.”

Based on the "peoples' vote" Sisk will proceed to the  CLA 3-Minute Thesis  on October 10, 2019. The student who wins CLA’s competition will move on to the U-wide final in November.

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Department of Pharmaceutics Graduate Student Wins University Three-Minute Thesis Competition

November 12, 2021

MINNEAPOLIS

Nov. 12, 2021

Vrishali Salian, a graduate student in the College of Pharmacy’s Department of Pharmaceutics, is the winner of the 2021  University of Minnesota Graduate School’s (Virtual) 3-Minute ThesisⓇ (3MT) competition. 

Salian was the winner of the college’s own 3MTⓇ competition last month which earned her a spot in the University-wide event. She competed with eight other University master’s and PhD students. Her presentation title is, “Identifying early signs of Alzheimer’s disease: An attempt to color lives.”

Salian is pursuing a PhD in pharmaceutics at the University. Her research focuses on cerebrovascular inflammation in Alzheimer’s disease and identification of a vascular inflammation biomarker whose expression is altered in the diseased state. Her advisor is  Dr. Karunya Kandimalla .

The goal of the 3MTⓇ competition is to celebrate the research conducted by graduate students around the world. Originally developed by The University of Queensland, the competition cultivates students’ academic, presentation and research communication skills. Competitors have three minutes to explain their research in language that is understandable for a non-specialist audience. 

Salian will go on to represent the University of Minnesota at the Midwestern Association of Graduate Schools (MAGS) 3MTⓇ competition.

Categories: Research Students

Tags: Health Sciences

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Chemical Engineering Student Wins Three-Minute Thesis Competition

The Graduate School is pleased to announce the winners of the 7th Annual Three-Minute Thesis Competition

Paulina Eberts, a doctoral student in the College of Science and Engineering and Chemical Engineering program took home the First Place and People's Choice Awards at the event on Friday, November 11. Eberts will represent the University of Minnesota at the Midwestern Association of Graduate Schools (MAGS) 3-Minute Thesis competition in Spring 2023.

Doctoral student Apoorva Limaye from the Medical School, Molecular Pharmacology and Therapeutics (MPaT) program, received the Second Place Award.

The Three-Minute Thesis Competition challenges graduate students to present their research in just 180 seconds, in a way that can be understood by an intelligent audience with no background in the subject. This competition helps our graduate students develop presentation and communication skills; the benefits of preparing for a three-minute thesis competition are valuable regardless of career path, degree objective, or discipline. Participants are allowed to refer to one, static slide during their presentations, but may not use any other props or media.

Special thanks goes to this year's judges:

• Merrie Benasutti, Coordinator of Community Partnerships, Office for Public Engagement, University of Minnesota
• Caroline Churchill, Owner, Churchill Consulting, LLC
• Mike O. Kenyanya, Regent, University of Minnesota
• Nicole MartinRogers, Research Scientist, Wilder Foundation
• Adair Mosley, Chief Executive Officer, African American Leadership Forum

Watch all of the participants' presentations:

Nichole angell.

Is an ounce of prevention really worth a pound of cure?

Water Resources Science, M.S., College of Food, Agricultural & Natural Resource Sciences

Emily coffey.

The Urinary Microbiome & Urinary Stone Disease in Dogs

Comparative and Molecular Biosciences, Ph.D., Veterinary Medicine

Paulina eberts.

Decoding Blood-Brain Barrier Dysfunction in Alzheimer's Disease

Chemical Engineering, Ph.D., College of Science and Engineering

Alyssa lantz.

Improving HIV prevention medications in women using female genital tissue

Experimental & Clinical Pharmacology, Ph.D., College of Pharmacy

Apoorva limaye.

Unraveling protein dynamics to facilitate rational drug designing

Molecular Pharmacology and Therapeutics (MPaT), Ph.D., Medical School

Vishruthi manickavasagan.

Optimizing Asphalt Mixture Design for Low-Volume Roads in Cold Climate Areas

Civil Engineering, M.S., Duluth Campus

Shanley roach.

Clearing hurdles: studying how viruses evolve and transmit to new species

Biochemistry, Molecular Biology and Biophysics, Ph.D., College of Biological Sciences

Ping! When Distraction Improves Attention

Psychology, Ph.D., College of Liberal Arts

Watch the competition in its entirety  .

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Wednesday, October 11, 2023

Attend the CSE Three-Minute Thesis competition on Monday, Oct. 23

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Orr to compete in University-wide presentation of 3-Minute-Thesis

Last spring, Madeleine Orr , School of Kinesiology Ph.D. student, won the College of Education and Human Development’s 3-Minute Thesis Competition (3MT) with her presentation, “The Rhetoric vs. the Reality of Sport Event Legacies.” On December 1 she will take the podium again as the University of Minnesota Graduate School hosts the U of M’s 3MT preliminary-round winners in a second competition. Orr will present along with Ruben D’sa from the College of Science and Engineering, Irene Bueno Padilla from the College of Veterinary Medicine, and Amritha Yellamilli from the Medical School.

Originally established by the University of Queensland in 2008, 3MT challenges research students to communicate the significance of their projects to a general audience in just three minutes, with the aid of a single, static slide.

Faculty, staff and students are encouraged to attend and support the presenters. The winner will represent the University of Minnesota at the Midwestern Association of Graduate Schools (MAGS) 3MT competition. In addition, participants will be invited to present their research at the upcoming Board of Regents meeting.

Orr is in the Sport Management emphasis and is advised by Yuhei Inoue, Ph.D .

Presentations are from 9-10 a.m. in 402 Walter Library. Awards and reception follow.  Register to attend here .

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3-Minute Thesis Competition Sparks New Ideas for Amritha Yellamilli

MD/PhD student Amritha Yellamilli represented the UMN Medical School this year at the  3-Minute Thesis competition , where she took second place honors from a panel of judges and was also selected as the People’s Choice winner from those in attendance. The idea: condense your thesis into a 3-minute presentation that can be understood by anyone, using only a single, static slide to illustrate your points.

Yellamilli studies cardiac regeneration – the heart’s natural ability to heal itself – in the von Berlo Lab at the Lillehei Heart Institute. Specifically, the team there is seeking to understand exactly which cells are responsible for the process. The 3-Minute Thesis competition, Yellamilli says, is a great opportunity to see the big picture of her work.

“As a scientist, you get so caught up in the little details,” says Yellamilli. “This forced me to take a step back and ask, ‘Why am I doing this? What is the impact I am hoping my research will have?’ ”

For Yellamilli, it’s all about improving heart health. “If we can increase the heart’s natural ability to generate new cells, we can replace the cells that are dying,” she says.

First, the team needs to figure out which cells are responsible for healing. Often, Yellamilli says, stem cells are removed from the heart and studied in cell culture. That is interesting, she says, but her team wants to know what actually happens in the heart – not in a culture.

When thinking of how to communicate the importance of studying the cells in their natural environment, Yellamilli’s imagination turns to nature. Tigers in a circus, she says, behave differently than those in the wild. “If you assumed all tigers behaved that way, you’d be in a lot of trouble. Cells behave a certain way in cell culture, but does that really mean that’s how they behave in the heart?”

The exercise of finding new ways to describe her work, she says, is helpful not only in learning to talk about her work but in exploring new perspectives.

“When you open it up to the public and get everyone thinking about it, you get a lot of interesting perspectives and questions that force you to think about it in a different way.”