Three Minute Thesis

Watch the final round on March 29

The Three Minute Thesis (3MT) is an academic research communication competition developed by the University of Queensland (UQ), Australia. Through the competition, graduate and professional students can hone their academic and research presentation skills and their ability to effectively explain their research to a general audience. Each competitor has three minutes to speak and can use only one presentation slide.

To attend in person or online, register using the link below. When registering for online attendance, you will receive a confirmation email with a link to view the live stream.

On this Page
Final Round Agenda
Meet the Finalists
Judges
Prizes
3MT Format
Contact

Final Round Agenda

Opening Remarks

Vice Provost for Graduate Education and Dean, J. Jeffrey and Ann Marie Fox Graduate School

Order of Presentations

Patrick Sarpong, Energy and Mineral Engineering, “The potential of bioleaching in the recovery of lithium from Lithium Iron Phosphate battery waste”
Tanveer Ahmed, Civil Engineering, “Adaptive traffic signal control measures for urban network problems”
Daisuke Hayashi, doctoral student in Nutritional Sciences, “A Mixed Methods Approach to Explore and Define Food Noise”
Adam Smerigan, Chemical Engineering, “The Untapped Treasure in Toxic Waste: Fueling Modern Technologies Sustainably”
Brad Foster, Molecular, Cellular, and Integrative Biosciences, “Investigating the Role of Mechanobiology in Driving Fatigue Loading Induced Tendon Degeneration”
Tasneem Tariq, Architecture, “How to Mitigate the Urban Heat Island Effect in Baltimore: Selecting Effective Mitigation Strategies Combining Simulation Study and Community Feedback”
Marjan Karimizadkomarej, Landscape Architecture, “Seeing is Believing: Realistic Water Visualizations for Better Stormwater Solutions”
Younes Shekarian, Energy and Mineral Engineering, “Development of a chemical-free process using ozone for the recovery of cobalt (Co), manganese (Mn), and Nickel (Ni) from acid mine drainage (AMD)”
Amin Sepehri, Architectural Engineering, “Buildings as Batteries via Smart Envelope”
Dr. Tricia Hart, Nutritional Sciences, “Eating Pecans as a Snack Reduced Heart Disease Risk Compared to Usual Diet in Adults at Increased Risk for Heart Disease”

People's Choice Award Voting

Attendees will receive a link or QR code to use to vote for their favorite presentation. Voting is only open for ten minutes after the final presentation.

Final Results Announced

Dr. Levon Esters will announce the first and second place award recipients, chosen by the invited panel of judges, and the People's Choice Award.

Meet the 2024-25 Finalists

Congratulations to the finalists for this year's Penn State Three Minute Thesis competition! They have advanced to compete in a final in-person round on Saturday, March 29, livestreamed from the Nittany Lion Inn on the University Park campus.

Learn about the finalists

Final Round Judges

Dr. Christina Grozinger
Director, Huck Institutes of the Life Sciences
Publius Vergilius Maro Professor of Entomology

Mahmudul Hasan
Doctoral Candidate, Chemical Engineering, Penn State

Jeff Middleton
Senior Director of Finance and North American AgriculturalBrands Controller
Case New Holland Industrial, Inc.

Dr. Tonya L. Peeples
Harold and Inge Marcus Dean, College of Engineering
Professor of Chemical Engineering

Prizes

First Place: $1,000
Second Place: $500
People's Choice: $500 (sponsored by the Graduate and Professional Student Association)

Competition Format

First Round - Video Submission

Submissions judged by alumni, graduate students, postdoctoral scholars, faculty, staff, and others. Submissions Due by October 25.
Final Round - In-Person

The top-ranking students from the first round are invited back to a final, in-person round live streamed from the University Park campus on Saturday, March 29.
Regional Competition

The top-ranking final round Penn State master's or doctoral student is invited to compete in a regional competition hosted by the Northeast Association of Graduate Schools.

Co-Sponsors

2023-24 Competition

You can view a livestream of the 2024 competition below.

Contact Us

If you have questions you can reach out to the Fox Graduate School.