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Score a Slam Dunk for Your Graduate Research with Grad Slam 2016

Quick Summary

  • Compete in Grad Slam to broadcast your research topic elevator-pitch style, all under just three minutes.
Video of 2015 winners from each UC campus performing three-minute elevator pitches of their research at the statewide Grad Slam tournament in Oakland, CA., including UC Davis' own Ryan Dowdy. Ryan's presentation starts at 5:00.

Imagine you’re in an elevator, zooming up to the penthouse of a skyscraper. How would you pitch your years of graduate research to an audience—in under just three minutes? The University of California is adopting the “TED talk on steroids” structure of Grad Slam yet again for 2016, giving you a chance to showcase your presentation and entertainment skills. How would you condense the sweat and tears you’ve poured into your research to a slim margin of 180 seconds?

Grad Slam gives Master's and PhD students the opportunity to present their world-changing ideas in a way that captures the attention of general audiences, while also spreading revolutionary ideas generated by UC Davis students. It encourages graduate students to explore innovative ways to present their research, to extrapolate the most groundbreaking parts, and streamline it all to a jargon-free elevator pitch that resonates with a broad range of audiences.

Last year was UC Davis’ first year participating in Grad Slam, which has since become a UC-wide event. It was a huge hit, attracting 35 contestants. We’re bringing it back again for 2016—this time, the qualifying rounds will occur on March 1st and the final round for UC Davis participants will be part of the Interdisciplinary Graduate and Professional Student Symposium (IGPS) on April 7 – 8. The winner of the UC Davis finals will compete in the UC system-wide competition on April 22.

The idea comes from all the way overseas, at the University of Queensland, Australia. In 2008, they introduced the Three Minute Thesis (3MT) contest, which offered cash prizes as an incentive. The University of California will be offering cash prizes too—with a total of $10,000 distributed across three rounds: the preliminaries, semifinals, and finals. Each advancing level offers a cash prize, in addition to the experiential benefits of mustering up the courage to take on the challenge.

Grad Slam originated at UC Santa Barbara, taking root in the other UC campuses as a double whammy, a challenge that both helps graduate students communicate their complex ideas in the simplest of terms, and at the same time, takes off the edge from the often stressful, compacted schedules of graduate students with the exhilarating performances delivered by fellow researchers. It won the Graduate Education Excellence and Innovation Award in 2013, for encouraging graduate students to deviate from their rigid research conventions in favor of a more memorable path, steeped in creativity. Grad Slam emphasizes compelling delivery, limiting its daring presenters to a maximum of just optional three slides (exclusive of the title page)—via PowerPoint; presenters must use their expertly-crafted presentation content to engage the audience rather than relying on visuals. For more information on the 2016 competition, please visit the UC Davis Grad Slam webpage. To get a sense of what a three-minute research presentation looks like, watch videos of the 2015 winners from each UC campus including UC Davis’ own campus winner—Ryan Dowdy.

Presenters will be judged for clarity, organization, delivery, visuals, and appropriateness. The judging panels consist of faculty, academic deans, administrative staff, alumni, postdoctoral scholars, and associated VIPs—offering multi-faceted opinions to gauge the quality of each performance.

Think you can dazzle your audience? If you’re up for the challenge, apply by February 1, 2016.

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