BYU’s 3MT (Three-Minute Thesis) Competition is a campus-wide contest with cash prizes in which students have three minutes to present their research projects. This is a great opportunity to practice presentation/oral advocacy skills in a low-stakes environment. Not a lot of preparation is required and you could win some money. BYU Law will host its competition on Tuesday, March 1st at 12pm, with the winner going on to represent the Law School in the campus competition on March 10th.
Participants will be judged “on how well they: 1) explain their research; 2) spark the audience’s desire to know more; and e) communicate in language ‘appropriate to an intelligent but non-specialist audience.'” One simple, static Powerpoint slide is allowed (no animations). Presentations from last year are available to view on the competition website.
It’s sort of like an extra-short TED talk. Judges are looking for how interesting and clear you can be in a very short amount of time and how your project relates to solving a real-life problem. Don’t use jargon and tell a story. For the official rules and more information, view this Google Doc. Registration closes on Friday, February 18th at 5pm. Click here to register using the Google Form.
Professor Gerdy Kyle is overseeing the Law School competition. Contact her with any questions. Good luck!