Preparing a Scientific Poster#

In poster sessions, students and researchers try to convey their research to an audience walking through a busy hall. To reach and engage that audience, posters should be eye-catching, to the point, and easy to understand.

How to prepare a ‘classic’ Scientific Poster#

While the status quo of scientific posters is far from perfect (see video above), academic supervisors, organizations and conference may require scientific posters in a pre-defined format. Below you will find a few tips to prepare a scientific poster that meets those expectations.

Some Poster Examples#

As is the case with most skills, preparing and presenting scientific posters can only be learned with experience. Try different layouts and work on multiple drafts of your poster before deciding on the final submission. Take advantage of existing posters to see what other scientists in your field understand by an academic poster.

How to evaluate a Scientific Poster#

Basics#

  • Title and other required sections are present

  • Complete author affiliation & contact information is included

  • The poster conforms to the requirements of the conference or program where it will be presented

  • Font is consistent throughout

  • Spelling is correct throughout

  • Grammar is correct throughout

  • Acronyms are defined on first use

  • Content is appropriate & relevant for audience

Design#

  • All text can be easily read from 4 feet away

  • Flow of the poster is easy to follow

  • White space used well

  • Section titles are used consistently

  • Images/graphics are used in place of text whenever possible

  • Bullet points/lists are used in place of text whenever possible

  • All images are relevant and necessary to the poster

  • Charts are correct – i.e. appropriate type for data, data is correct & correctly represented

  • Text color and background color are significant in contrast for easy reading

  • Background color doesn’t obscure or dim text

  • Images are clear, not pixilated or blurry

Content#

  • The “story” of the poster is clear

  • The content is focused on 2-3 key points

  • Title is clear & informative of the project

  • Problem, or clinical question, is identified and explained

  • Current evidence related to project is listed

  • Objectives are stated

  • Methods are described

  • Results are presented

  • Conclusions are stated

  • Implications to practice and to other professions are presented

  • References are listed

  • All content is relevant and on the key points

  • Content is not duplicated in text and graphics

Oral Presentation#

  • Presenter greets people

  • Presenter is able to give a concise synopsis of poster

  • Presenter is able to explain all diagrams and sections

  • Presenter speaks fluently – i.e. doesn’t stumble, leave sentences/thoughts hanging

  • Presenter has questions to ask viewers