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Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition

28 May 2024

Could you explain your entire thesis in three minutes? The annual 3MT Challenge is part of a global competition for UC postgraduate research students.

HOW TO APPLY

The Three Minute Thesis (3MT) is an academic research communication competition developed by the . It is an exciting, fast-paced event that is held annually in more than 900 universities in 85 countries.

This entertaining event gives thesis students the chance to present their research to a large audience while competing for a number of generous prizes. The presentation must be no more than three minutes, incorporating only one static PowerPoint slide. The overall ߣ Doctoral winner will then go on to participate in the

First Place:$3000research grant

Second Place: $1500 research grant

Third Place: $750 research grant

Peoples Choice award: $500 research grant

The top Doctoral candidate will represent UC at the Asia-Pacific virtual event finals (hosted by the University of Queensland). Note this will be a recorded submission and support will be provided around recording.

The competition is open to:

Master's Research Students who are currently enrolled in a thesis (90 points or greater).

Doctoral Candidates who have successfully passed their confirmation milestone (including candidate whose thesis is under examination) by the date of their first presentation are eligible to participate in the 3MT competitions at all levels, including the Asia-Pacific 3MT competition. Graduates are not eligible.

Pre-confirmation doctoral candidates who are active in program are still eligible to participate in the UC 3MT competition for the first round of their relevant competition (Department or Faculty) but cannot advance to the second round or the UC 3MT Final.

UC Master's and Doctoral Thesis students must communicate their research in no more than three minutes, with the help of only one static title slide, with the presentation aimed at to a non-specialist audience. 

Each Faculty runs its own 3MT heats, with the heat finalists progressing to the 3MT finals held at theResearch Student Showcase Event. The best doctoral entry will represent UC at the Asia-Pacific 3MT competition on Wednesday 15th October 2025 (virtual event).

We are excited to announce that this year we will be hosting a live finals event once more! 

Title Slide:All entries will need to include a static title slide, check with your Department Coordinator about these requirements or download the standard 3MT title slide here:(clicking this link will download the file directly to your device).

Faculty heats information including entry links below:

2025 Faculty heat information coming soon.

Workshops & resources to support participants
Technical Support from theAcademic Skills Centre

For students who would like feedback on a preliminary/draft recording before they make their final submission, the Academic Skills Centre can provide honest and constructive feedback on how well you have met theUC Final 3MT Judging Criteria.Please emailacademicskills@canterbury.ac.nzor phone 03 369 3900 and ask for a “quick query” with either Julie or Jessi.

Previous Competitions
UC 3MT winners & finalists 2024

1st Place - Brittany Ogden-Travis

Listening to Children in Aotearoa

2nd Place - Chris Kelly

Measuring Problematic Media Use in Children

3rd Place - Megan Eustace

Rongoā reo: Supporting Communication for Māori with Dementia

Anna Christoforou

The murky ethics of bordering technologies

Amelia Threadgould

From Roots to Resilience

Ayushi Tiwari

Solving Bob's Dilemma

Haris Butt

Is Your Work-Team Resilient?

Emily Schleuss

We have a fashion emergency. Can social media fix it?

Kaleb McGillivray

Shaping Ultrasound Communication – Threading the Needle

Madeline Mills

Rewiring Your Brain with Swallowing Skill Training

Will Durkin

Cold Kids, Hot Topic

Rebecca Attwell

Athletes, Body Image, and the Menstrual Cycle

Thejani Madhuhansi Wickrama

Shaping a sustainable future through responsible disposal practices

UC 3MT winners & finalists 2023

1st Place - Henry Hoult

Mt Taranaki has a plumbing problem

2nd Place - Gladys Tan

Does the amount of citric acid matter?

3rd Place - Kate Wislang

What are you not seeing?

Sam Brett

Local Narratives of Climate in Response to Policy Consultation

Peiman Pishyar-Dehkordi

Multi-sensory Perception of Sound Sequences in Languages

Phoebe Eggleton

Defining exposure to the Canterbury Earthquake Sequence (2010-11)

Victoria Leggett

Happy and you know it?

John Paul Smith

Authentic Engagement with Rainbow Communities in Social Marketing

Elyse Gagnon

You can’t be playing the woman card, stories of menstruation within the NZ Army

Juliet Robertson

Circular Supply Chains: Enhancing Consumer Engagement

Nicholas Lam

Reducing modelling uncertainty - Can we improve the precision of diabetes diagnostics?

Tina Yee

Reconceptualizing and Reforming New Zealand’s Deportation Law

3MT competition: Part of the annual Whakāturanga Rangahau | Research Student Showcase Event

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