From tips on designing posters to presentation strategies, a workshop for the upcoming Create@State research symposium gave students the tools they need to effectively prepare for the event.

Miya Wolverton, a junior biology major and student ambassador for the student research council from Marion, Arkansas, said they hosted the event to help students feel more confident going into the symposium, as the deadline to apply recently closed.

“On March 13th, the abstract portal for Create@State just closed, so we’re having a poster presentation to give students help on how to make their posters for Create@State,” Wolverton said.

To aid in students’ presentation skills, the student research council brought in faculty mentors, Maureen Dolan and Shea Harris, to share their expertise on creating posters for the event.

Create@State features work from eight different academic colleges and over 100 faculty mentors supporting students’ projects. Dolan told students they could face up to 30 viewers at a time during their presentations.

For reasons like these, Dolan said it is important to focus on the details, like which hues could work for individuals with visual impairments.

Shah Jahan, a graduate student in applied digital technology from Pakistan, said the event was particularly useful as they’ve never presented at the symposium before.

“The information I got about color combinations and what content to include in the poster was very useful for me,” Jahan said.

The workshop’s impact was reflected not only through student opinion but also in its strong turnout.

Carey Harris, director of the Office of Student Research and Scholarship, said the event had a greater impact than expected.

“We held the event in the library, which is a good central spot for students,” Harris said. “But we’ve also been very advertising-heavy.”

Harris said the advertising heavily contributed to the large attendance.

Wolverton said the workshop showed a growing enthusiasm for research at A-State. As Create@State approaches, Wolverton said students are now better equipped to present their work with confidence.

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