The Toronto Star profiles U of T’s Three Minute Thesis competition: Why the initiative matters

For her Three-Minute Thesis presentation, University of Toronto PhD student Ain Kim described how artificial intelligence can help scientists understand the pathological subtypes of a rare and terminal neurological disorder called multiple system atrophy. She is shown at a lab in the Krembil Discovery Tower in downtown Toronto. (Photo: Andrew Francis Wallace/Toronto Star)

Every year, graduate students from across U of T’s three campuses take part in the Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition, which challenges researchers to explain their scholarship to a general audience in just three minutes, using only one static slide. For graduate students, the exercise underscores the importance of being able to communicate your research to a wider audience in an accessible manner. But for people outside academia – our students’ partners, friends, families, and communities – the competition helps them understand the real-world impact of graduate-student research.

A recent story in the Toronto Star (published on March 26) examined the importance of the 3MT competition and its role in demystifying academia to the world outside the university. For the story, reporter Janet Hurley spoke to 3MT semi-finalist and PhD student Ain Kim (Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology) as well as Prof. Kelly Lyons, SGS’s Acting Vice-Dean, Research and Program Innovation.

Read the story in the Toronto Star

U of T’s 2023 semi-finals, featuring Ain Kim and other competitors, will take place on March 28, 29, and 30. The finals for this year’s competition will take place on April 13, 2023. Learn more about the competition and register to watch on our website.