Poster Guidelines and Rubrics

Poster Guidelines and Rubric

The 2024 MBIM URS will be in-person this year which affords us the opportunity to showcase posters! Students are encouraged to register in teams or as an individual.

Download this information and rubrics here: URS 2024 Poster Guidelines.

Download Horizontal and vertical poster templates

Presentation Logistics:

  • Posters must be 36 x 48” inches (4cm x 121.9cm) in format. It can be either horizontal or vertical. Sample templates are available on the event website.
  • Posters will be displayed in Life Sciences Institute (LSI) atrium
  • For MICB 471 and MICB 475 posters, presenters will be asked to submit their poster in PDF format by April 22nd to have them printed by Craig Kornak. Detailed instructions to follow. For all other projects, we encourage you to consult your lab PI for printing services.
  • You can but do not need to include the URS logo on your poster.
  • During the designated presentation period, presenters will need to stand near their posters.
  • Presenters will be given an opportunity to present a 5-minute walkthrough to judge(s):
    • For various other visitors that may view your poster, presenters should ask whether they would like a quick elevator pitch/recap or their 5-minute walk through.
  • At the end of the day, presenters will be asked to take down their posters.
    • Posters are the property of the presenters and MBIM URS 2024 will not be able to store them long term.

Presentation Layout and Format

  • Please submit posters in ready-to-print PDF format. The dimensions of the research poster when printed will be 36 x 48” inches (length and width interchangeable), so keep that in mind.
  • To ensure that presentations are the required dimensions, you may choose to either download the MBIM URS 2024 presentation template or create a new PowerPoint file (instructions below):
    • Create a new PowerPoint file. To change the dimensions to fit the recommended poster size and resolution, go to:
      • Design (on the top bar)
      • Slide size (on the right)
      • Page Setup
      • Set width at 121.92 cm (4 ft) and height at 91.44 cm (3 ft).
    • When you’re ready to print, save your poster as a PDF directly using the ‘save as PDF’ option in PowerPoint.
    • Ensure that font sizes are large enough to be legible at a distance. A good rule of thumb is that text should be no smaller than 20 point font.
    • Remember, the less text is used, the better. Instead, try to make use of images, tables, and diagrams.
      • If using images or tables that are not your own, make sure to properly cite your sources.
      • To minimize loss of resolution, when uploading images or figures, ensure that images are inserted as .tiff, .jpg, or .eps formats.
      • For figures, resources such as Coblis and ColorBrewer are useful resources for designing data that is colour-blind friendly.
    • When you’re ready to print, save your poster as a PDF directly using the ‘save as PDF’ option in PowerPoint.
    • Avoid placing images, objects, or text too close to each other or right to the edges of your poster. Try to leave a minimum of ½” margin, as the printing process may result in content at the edges being cut off.
    • It can be tempting to utilize bright colours to attract attention; however, posters should have a pleasing contrast between text and background colours. Avoid dark, high-contrast, or overly saturated colours, and limit your colour palette to 3-4 colours at maximum.
    • When curating the layout of your poster, keep in mind that content at the top left will be the audience’s entry point into your project. It is best to place something eye-catching or engaging in this position.
    • Organize content into columns or rows; this can be useful when defining the flow of your presentation.
    • Presenters should aim to guide the audience through the ‘story’ of your project. Be prepared to describe the axes and controls of any figures shown.
    • Common sections to include in a research poster include (but are not limited to):
      • Title
      • Authors & affiliations
      • Introduction
      • Research Aims/Hypothesis
      • Methodology
      • Results
      • Conclusion(s)
      • References
      • Acknowledgements

Presentation Day

  • Poster presentations can be individual or team-based (up to 5 people).
  • Poster presentations to judges are timed and will be limited to 5 minutes.
  • Please note: talks that exceed the indicated time limit will be ineligible for the “Best Poster Presentation” awards.
  • Presenters should be prepared to receive questions and feedback from judges and audience members, which will be facilitated by a committee member.
  • This rubric will be used to assess your poster: Poster Judging Rubric 2024

 Useful resources for preparing poster presentations: