Three Minute Thesis (3MT)
What is the Three Minute Thesis (3MT)?
Your graduate research. 3 minutes. 1 slide.
Every year the University of Toronto hosts the Three Minute Thesis Competition (3MT®), a competition in which graduate students present their work to a generalist audience in 3 minutes using only one static slide.
2024 3MT Winners and Finalists
Congratulations to the 2024 3MT winners and finalists!
First Place and People’s Choice
Daniil Lisus
Institute of Aerospace Studies, Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering
Helping Autonomous Cars See What Our Eyes Can’t
Second Place
Emaad Paracha
Department of Physics, Faculty of Arts & Science
Detecting Dark Matter in Galaxy Clusters from the Stratosphere
Third Place
Angel Badewole
Department of Chemical Engineering & Applied Chemistry, Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering
Assessing the Environmental Impacts of an Innovative Chemical Production Pathway
Finalist | Graduate Unit and Faculty |
Tabina Ahmed | Department of Physiology, Temerty Faculty of Medicine |
Angel Badewole | Department of Chemical Engineering & Applied Chemistry, Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering |
Connor Brenna | Department of Physiology, Temerty Faculty of Medicine |
Alexia Cumal | Lawrence S. Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing |
Mimi Deng | Institute of Medical Science, Temerty Faculty of Medicine |
Kyle Farwell | Faculty of Kinesiology & Physical Education |
Carolyn Kelly-Ruetz | Department of Laboratory Medicine & Pathobiology, Temerty Faculty of Medicine |
Daniil Lisus | Institute of Aerospace Studies, Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering |
Angelico Obille | Institute of Biomedical Engineering, Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering |
Emaad Paracha | Department of Physics, Faculty of Arts & Science |
Nicholas Silver | Department of Biochemistry, Temerty Faculty of Medicine |
Nadine Zaghrini | Department of Civil and Mineral Engineering, Faculty of Applied Science & Engineering |
Watch / Listen to the 2023 3MT Winners
3MT in the News
2023 U of T 3MT winner Emily Majaesic wins first place at the Ontario Regional competition
Emily Majaesic with SGS Dean Joshua Barker at the Ontario Regional final held at Queen’s University
2024 3MT Competition Schedule
Round | Date | Registration |
---|---|---|
Workshop: Preparing your 3MT Presentation (In person) | January 26, 2024, 5:00-6:30 pm | |
Workshop: Preparing your 3MT Presentation (Online) | January 18, 5:30–7:00 pm | |
Workshop: Preparing your 3MT Presentation (Asynchronous) | Available on-demand | Register here |
U of T Preliminary Heats 1-8 | February 20-22, 2024 | Grad Room (66 Harbord St.) February 26-29, 2024 | Grad Room (66 Harbord St.) | |
U of T Semi-Finals | March 12-14, 2024, 5:00 – 7:00 p.m. | UC 161 (University College Amphitheatre at 15 King’s College Circle) | |
U of T Finals | March 26, 2024, 5:30 – 8:30 p.m. | William Doo Auditorium in New College III at 45 Willcocks | Register for tickets |
Northeastern Association of Graduate Schools (NAGS) Competition | April 26, 2024, 3:00-5:00 p.m. EST, online | |
Ontario 3MT Regionals | May 8, 2024 (Hosted by Lakehead University Orillia Campus) | |
National 3MT Showcase | November 2024 (Sheraton Hotel, Toronto) | |
Council of Graduate Studies Showcase | TBA |
Why You Should Participate in the 3MT
Improve your oral presentation skills, profile your research, and learn about our community’s cutting-edge ideas.
- Present your 3MT to generalist audiences at the University of Toronto.
- Winning the University of Toronto 3MT finals will allow you to compete at the provincial level.
- You can even advance to showcase your research at the national and international level.
In addition to the opportunity to improve your communication skills and showcase your research, there are prizes for 3MT winners: $1000 for first place, $500 for second place, $250 for third place, and $200 for the people’s choice winner, paid into your student account.
Ready to Apply?
Learn more about the 3MT competition.
Complete the registration form and take part in a preliminary heat.
Attend and cheer on your peers in the U of T 3MT Heats, Semi-Finals, and Finals.
Eligibility, Rules, and Judging Criteria
How 3MT Works
Competitors progress from the preliminary heats to the semi-finals and then to the finals. The judges will award first, second, and third place, while the audience’s favourite presentation is awarded the people’s choice.
Competition Levels at a Glance
- University of Toronto level
- This 3MT competition is hosted by the School of Graduate Studies. Competitors begin in the preliminary heats and may advance to the semi-finals and finals.
- Ontario 3MT Showcase
- The winner of the University of Toronto 3MT competes at the Ontario provincial competition, hosted by a different Ontario university each year.
- National 3MT Showcase
- The Canadian Association for Graduate Studies (CAGS) hosts the top finalists from each of the provincial competitions (Western, Ontario, Eastern) to compete in an online format. The video recordings of the finalists’ presentations are played and judged.
- Northeastern Association of Graduate Schools (NAGS) Competition
- The winner of the University of Toronto 3MT competes internationally. The NAGS competition brings together the 3MT winners of universities across the provinces of New Brunswick, Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Prince Edward Island and Quebec, and the American states of Connecticut, Delaware, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, Vermont, and Washington, D.C. Competitors present live in front of a panel of judges.
- Council of Graduate Studies Showcase
- The Council of Graduate Studies hosts a North America-wide 3MT showcase with the winners from the southern, western, midwestern, and northeastern regions presenting their 3MT orations and participating in a roundtable discussion. The audience is then given a chance to confer a People’s Choice Award.
Frequently Asked Questions
Other questions? Contact us at cgpd@utoronto.ca
Training and Resources
- Workshop: Preparing Your 3MT Presentation
by Dr. Cristina D’Amico, 2016 U of T 3MT winner
- GCAC Oral Presentation Skills Courses – Courses are available in different formats and for different audiences
- U of T Libraries Workshop: Visual Literacy: Interpreting and Evaluating Images (Maps, Charts, Diagrams, Photographs) for Research and Publishing
- Data Visualization – An Introduction (Part 1 – Theory and Critique)
- Data Visualization – An Introduction (Part 2 – Practice with Tableau)
- Making the Most of Your Three Minutes by Simon Clews, Director, Writing Centre, University of Melbourne
- How to Talk About Your Thesis in 3 Minutes by Inger Mewburn (RMIT)
- Communicating Your Research in Lay Language by Christian A Linte, IEEE Engineering in Medicine & Biology Magazine, May / June 2009
- 3MT Presentation: Now You See It by Rosanna Stevens, ANU TV, 2014
- 3MT: Three Tips to Help You Prepare a Winning Presentation by Rosanna Stevens, ANU TV, 2015