Getting Started in Presenting

1. Getting Started in Presenting By: Kim Schroeder

2. Why? • Be Known • Confidence Builder • Networking Potential • Logical Progression of Your Research • Professional Presence • Differentiates You for Job Hunting

3. Posters - The Specs • Often very open but here is SAA’s call: • Individual posters may describe applied or theoretical research that is completed or underway; discuss interesting collections with which students have worked; or report on archives and records projects in which students have participated (e.g., development of finding aids, public outreach, database construction, etc.). Submissions should focus on research or activity conducted within the previous academic year (Fall 2013-Summer 2014). Poster dimensions: 32 inches by 40 inches (may read vertically or horizontally). • Student Chapter posters may describe chapter activities, events, and/or other involvement with the archives and records professions. A single representative should coordinate the submission of each Student Chapter proposal. Poster dimensions: 32 inches by 40 inches (may read vertically or horizontally). • http://www2.archivists.org/conference/2014/washington/call-for-student-paper-and-poster-presentations-2014-joint-annual-meeting#.U3EL24FdWTY

4. Posters - The Specs • ALA’s Call is here and this page even has further recommendations: • Tips for Poster Session Abstracts • In 250 words or less, superb poster abstracts should include the following: • A concise description of the project itself. • If the topic is not brand-new, it would be helpful to explain how your work has brought something new to the state of human knowledge about the topic. • If your project is a ?how our library did something good? type project, it's important to have evidence of evaluation. Participation levels, user evaluations, peer-review, a change in relevant data (web server statistics): anything to show the relative success of your project. The evaluation does not have to be complete by the time of your poster submission, but some evaluation should be complete by the time of the ALA conference. • Some explanation of how your session will "make the most of the medium." Will you have graphs? Models? Photographs? Sample materials? • If you plan on a laptop, it needs to run off a battery; we have no power.

5. Posters - Choosing a Topic • Consider research, papers, projects from class • Projects from internships, practicums or work • Interesting discussions in class • Research holes • Work with a partner • Student groups • Mentor

6. Posters – The Steps • Submission for consideration • Usually they require an abstract • Follow the directions precisely • Ask the contact person if you do not understand • Let others review • Submit and confirm receipt • If you are turned down ask for input as to why

7. Posters – The Steps • Creation of Research Poster • Storyboard the content in a visual manner • Use summaries of research and cite all sources • There are plenty of Research Poster Powerpoint templates out there to use. • You will need to get it printed, but it is reasonable

8. Posters – The Steps • Execution of the Poster • Find out if you need to mount the poster to a board or if the association will bring pins, boards and easels • Stand by your poster for the entire Poster Session have resumes, business cards and hand-outs plentiful • Follow-up with ANYONE that gives you their card afterward

9. Final Hints From Your Classmates • “…charts and diagrams (SmartArt!) have worked well for me, with very readable text as supplemental information.Also, shop around for prices; check the university printing services (and if you work at another university, check theirs, too, and compare it to what else is available). I did a poster about my experiences working at a university archive; not only was the base poster printing much cheaper than anything else, but my department had an account that they let me charge the poster and lamination to. Mine may have been a special case since what I was talking about is part of a big project at the archive, but it pays to ask the advice of colleagues, professors, or staff when shopping around. I don't know if it's good advice for everyone, but when it comes to posters and presentations, I say just go for it and work out the details later. I think it can be too easy to back out of such an opportunity as a student, since it is not required and may not be directly related to work, but it's so worthwhile that diving in is just the way to do it.” • Courtney Whitmore

10. Final Hints From Your Classmates • “For posters, I think it is a good idea to remember that they are largely a visual product. It helps to limit the text content and provide supplemental and/or supporting material in a paper.” • Aubrey Maynard

11. Final Hints From Your Classmates • “My insight is from the perspective of a student finding their passion and working with a team member with similar interests and previous experience with a research poster or presentation. Having little experience in this area when I started, it was quite helpful for me to work on the research poster with Aubrey, who had previous experience in developing a poster from the previous year. Aubrey provided a flexible outline that I was able to follow as I wrote sections of the paper. She wrote sections of the paper and focused primarily on the poster to ensure that we covered everything in the poster. I did the final proofreading. So, I felt that we had good synergy and our collaboration allowed us to use are strengths to create a professional and polished poster. I don't think my individual poster would have been as well articulated my first time out.I feel students must know their interests and develop passion from them to come up with poster ideas. Because any type of research even if it's just a literature review requires a high-level of interest in the topic to review dozens of articles on the topic and integrate portions of the information into a coherent format. For a student to develop an interest, they have to take part in some activity that helps them learn about an area of the field or further develop their knowledge. Joining the NDSA helped me direct my interests.” • Roxanne Brazell

12. Presenting – The Idea • Deciding on an appropriate association is as important as your topic • Choose what you can feel comfortable about the first time. • Base it off of papers, class projects or work experience

13. Presenting – The Idea • Talk to colleagues, employers, faculty members and other students about topics of interest • Look at association programs for topic trends • Examine allied fields of content (For instance, Technology, History, Digital Forensics, Sociology, Big Data, etc.)

14. Presenting – The Idea • Develop abstract proposal and circulate to several people for their input • Submit within deadline and follow all directions • Tell contact that you are flexible and willing to work with others on a panel or modify as needed

15. Presenting – The Steps • Develop Outline 2. Put it in Powerpoint • Write Notes on the bottom of each slide • Practice! Practice! Practice! • For your first presentation it might be good to do a run through in front of friends.

16. Presenting – The Execution • The day of the presentation is not a day to be stressed. It is a day to revel in the fact that you made it this far! • By this point, you do not realize how much that you know on the topic. • Relax and share that knowledge with your colleagues. • We are a friendly audience!

17. Presenting – The Aftermath • If there is a survey, get the results. • Ask colleagues if they have suggestions. • You will do better each time you present.

18. Additional Resources • http://thesiswhisperer.com/2011/05/19/5-ways-to-poster-fail/ • http://www.utexas.edu/ugs/our/poster • http://www.dartmouth.edu/~ugar/undergrad/posterinstructions.html • http://ala14.ala.org/general-tips-for-submitting-poster-sessions

19. Additional Resources • http://www.clemson.edu/transportation/guidelines/Professional%20Presentation.doc • http://people.eecs.ku.edu/~saiedian/teaching/Common/pres.pdf • http://www.accuconference.com/resources/effective-presentations.aspx