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Doctoral Student Monika Roy Wins Three Minute Thesis Competition
Monika Roy, a doctoral student in environmental health sciences, won the university’s second annual Three Minute Thesis Competition (3MT) on March 2. Organized by the Graduate School’s Office of Professional Development, the three-week-long contest tested the research communication skills of 50 doctoral and master’s students by challenging them to explain the significance of their academic projects in accessible and compelling presentations totaling three minutes or less.
A panel of five judges chose Roy as the top finisher from a group of 10 students who had advanced from preliminary rounds to compete in the 3MT finals in the Campus Center Auditorium. Yuren Yue, a doctoral student in food science, finished in second place. The finals audience of more than 200 spectators also voted on its favorite presentation to determine a 3MT “People’s Champion.” That honor went to Xiaoqiong Cao, a doctoral student in food science. In recognition of their top performances, Roy, Yue and Cao each received cash prizes from the Graduate School.
Roy’s presentation addressed the role common water contaminants may play in undermining the human body’s ability to metabolize medicine. Other finalists discussed a broad array of topics, including the development of biodegradable packaging, the presence of potentially hazardous nanoparticles in food, new ways of understanding artificial intelligence, and the evolution of human sweating.
“The Three Minute Thesis Competition was a wonderful event,” says Barbara Krauthamer, dean of the Graduate School. “Providing an amazing showcase for the exceptionally high caliber of research UMass graduate students are undertaking, it allowed participants to demonstrate their deep engagement with important and relevant intellectual problems, their prodigious creativity, and their remarkable ability to translate complex ideas into lucid narratives. I congratulate all of the students who competed in this contest on their outstanding work.”
According to Krauthamer, 3MT participants will realize important benefits from the experience of distilling their work into readily accessible presentations. “While academic researchers typically thrive at conveying their ideas to colleagues with whom they share a common language, they may encounter significant obstacles in explaining their research to non-specialists,” she says. “Yet professional advancement—beginning with conducting a successful job search or securing research funding from a government agency—often hinges on the ability to explain the overarching purpose and importance of technical research to disparate groups. And it is precisely this skill that the Three Minute Thesis Competition helps students acquire and hone.”