Graduate College launches unique Three Minute Presentation competition

Thursday, November 5, 2015

OSU management science and information systems graduate student Sid Grover makes a point during his preliminary Three Minute Presentation in October. Grover is one of 12 finalists who will compete in the Graduate College 3MP finals November 12 at 3:30 pm in the Student Union Little Theater.

The Oklahoma State University Graduate College has launched a new Three Minute Presentation (3MP) competition for non-thesis master’s, education specialist and graduate certificate students.

The 3MP competition is unique to OSU’s Graduate College. OSU is the first university to start a 3MP competition for students not eligible to compete in the Three Minute Thesis (3MT®), first developed by the University of Queensland in Australia. 3MT® is limited to graduate students in research-based degrees such as thesis master’s or Ph.D. degrees.

The Three Minute Presentation competition, modeled on the 3MT®, is designed to teach students the important skill of explaining what they do and how their graduate discipline is relevant to addressing societal needs to audiences outside specialists in their field of study.

Dr. Ken Clinkenbeard, associate dean of the Graduate College and the 3MP organizer, notes that although OSU’s graduate programs thoroughly train students to speak with other experts in their field, many students aren’t as comfortable speaking to a general audience about their work.

“We believe that being able to talk with a broader audience is an essential skill,” Clinkenbeard said. “Clear and engaging communication skills are vital to the success of our students irrespective of what their future careers may be.”

The preliminary 3MP rounds were held in October. First, second and third place winners in each of the four preliminary rounds received cash prizes of $200, $150 and $100, respectively. The top 12 finishers from the preliminaries are Lacey Roberts, Autumn Zhong, Monika Ambadi, Chandrani Bhagat, Vaibhav Borgaonkar, Rishabh Dimri, Abhinav Garg, Sid Grover, Snigdha Gutha, Raghav Nargotra, Rajesh Tolety and Bhuvaneswari Yallabandi.

The winners of the preliminary rounds advance to the university finals, November 12 at 3:30 p.m. in the Student Union Little Theatre. First, second and third place winners of the finals will receive cash prizes of $1,000, $750 and $500, respectively.

The people’s choice prizewinner, selected by a vote of the audience at the finals, will also receive $1,000.

For more information, visit https://gradcollege.okstate.edu/3mp, or contact Clinkenbeard at ken.clinkenbeard@okstate.edu or 405-744-4578.