180 seconds to get it right: Concordia’s 3 Minute Thesis and Project Competition is here

This year, there are 20 master’s students and 12 PhD students registered to compete.

Here, last year’s winner and this year’s master of ceremony Racha Cheikh-Ibrahim, a PhD biochemistry student in the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, gives students some tips, explains what gave her an edge and what she got out of the experience:

What can students expect when they enter the 3MT?

Once you attend the information session, each student signs up for individual coaching sessions with GradProSkills coaches. I still remember the first coaching session, where we were asked to write a draft of our 3MT presentation and present it to the coaches and our fellow participants. Although I thought I did a good job simplifying my presentation, it was still too technical. 

At the end of my practice, one of my fellow participants told me that he didn’t get anything I said and asked me to repeat it. I ditched my draft and tried to simply explain it to him in a more friendly way. It was funny how everybody in the room then said, ‘Now we understand what you are doing, you should use this as your draft.' 

That sounds daunting…

You definitely go through ups and downs, and your presentation will look completely different at the end of the process. At one point during the training, I wanted to quit, but I was glad my coaches convinced me to carry on. 

What was your research topic?

My research focuses on improving the utilization of wood biomass to replace fossil-based fuels. Biomass can be refereed to any material derived from plants or plant-based material. Although wood biomass is widely available, its deconstruction process to simple sugar is still very costly.

My project focuses on maximizing sugar yield from various treated biomass materials by studying the factors that hinder the deconstruction efficiency and discovering and applying high-efficient microorganisms that yield higher sugar rates, and thus recovering more value from the same amount of material used.  

What gave you the winning edge?

Practice. Practice makes perfect. I practiced my presentation with different audiences and took their feedback and incorporated it into my presentation. This not only includes your presentation, but also your body language, which I believe is as important, if not more important.

What did you get out of the process?

You will definitely improve your communication skills, public speaking skills and boost your confidence. 3MT is a great exercise for honing your pitch and learning how to communicate your ideas in a clear and concise way.

You can apply it during any meeting, job interview, networking event, even on a first date. Another important take-away is to pay more attention to your body language.

Do you have any tips to share?

The fact that you’re participating means that you’ve already won. Listen to the valuable tips from your coaches and from your colleagues. Don’t let anyone underestimate your ability. You can do it!!

Take this as a chance to tell the world what you have been busy doing for the past couple of years in your graduate studies.  Enjoy this experience. I loved it and I would do it again in a heartbeat.

The 2016 competition will select two students to represent Concordia at the regional Three Minute Thesis competition, taking place at Memorial University and the Ma Thèse en 180 seconds competition at Université de Québec à Montréal in May.

The Concordia 3 Minute Thesis (3MT) and Project Competition competition is on Wednesday March 16, from 1:30 to 6:30 p.m. in Room H-763 of the Henry F. Hall Building.

Please arrive by 1 p.m. Audience members need not register. The presentations end at 4:30 p.m. followed by a cocktail party from 5 to 6:30 p.m.