Koyel Sen<\/strong><\/p>\n For Sen, this means that a video of her explanation will compete for top honors with winning entries submitted by schools from all over the world \u2013 with her fellow graduate students seeking recognition for what they can say in 180 seconds.<\/p>\n Sen\u2019s thesis is about 3D printing of solid dosage forms and how this impacts society. Gupta\u2019s is about automated manufacturing of anti-cancer products in a \u201cuniversal language\u201d.<\/p>\n The Three Minute Thesis (3MT\u00ae) competition was originally conceived by the University of Queensland in 2008. Now administered by Universitas 21 (U21), a leading global network of research-intensive universities, the competition challenges students to communicate the significance of their projects in clear, concise language. The only graphic allowed is a single, static slide. Nothing extra in the way of costumes, props, or sound is allowed. It\u2019s just one student at a time describing a complicated subject in three fleeting minutes.<\/p>\n Why 3 minutes?<\/strong><\/p>\n Stuart Duncan, Director of Fellowships, Outreach and Programming at The Graduate School says that while there is considerable fun involved for students trying to explain their topics without the use of academic jargon, audio, or video support, there\u2019s a serious purpose to the competition, as well.<\/p>\n Duncan says, \u201cThese students will eventually meet with hiring committees or be involved with raising money to fund their research. They may have to explain what they are doing to the media or to step into a classroom filled with undergraduates new to their field. The importance of good communication cannot be underestimated. We\u2019re here to help our graduate students meet their goals, and the 3MT\u00ae is one way to do that.\u201d<\/p>\n Sen agrees with Duncan. She says, \u201cParticipating in the three minute thesis competition has been one of the highlights of my Ph.D. studies. Although I have always been passionate about my work, I am not very good at public speaking and I have always felt there has been a gap in conveying exactly what I am doing in my research.\u201d<\/p>\n The judges of UConn\u2019s competition obviously disagreed with Sen about her public speaking ability; all ranked her at the top of their lists. The panel consisted of Rory McGloin, Assistant Professor and Director of Undergraduate Studies in the Department of Communication; Janine Ciera, Distinguished Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology; Heather McDonald, Assistant Vice President for Development at the UConn Foundation, and EEB Ph.D. candidate Tanisha Williams who was last year’s second place winner in the competition.<\/p>\n Sen added, \u201cThe competition pushed me to explore this gap where I got to be more creative \u2026 the journey of 3MT\u00ae was pretty amazing as well because I got to practice my communications skills with some brilliant [UConn] experts. I also learned to have fun while presenting. Above all, I got to know about so many amazing research projects that have been going on in the other departments at UConn.\u201d<\/p>\n Anand Gupta<\/strong><\/p>\n Gupta also had a positive experience, one he found particularly challenging due to his innate enthusiasm and willingness to talk about his thesis.<\/p>\n![\"Koyel](\"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/04\/Sen-2-1024x683.jpg\")
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