3-Minute Paper Competition

Months of work . . . 180 seconds to explain it.

What is 3MP?

3-Minute Paper (3MP) is an exciting competition for undergraduate students developed in collaboration by the colleges of Trent University and the Academic Skills; this initiative was sparked by the success of the  3-Minute Thesis (3MT®) Competition where Trent graduate students explain their highly specialized research to a general audience in a short three minutes with the support of a single PowerPoint slide.

Open to Trent students completing an honours seminar, an honours thesis, or a major project in any discipline, the 3MP competition challenges undergraduates to present their work to others, in a clear, concise, and engaging manner. Participants have three minutes to explain their research from one major assignment in an upper year course. 3MP challenges students to balance complexity and depth with clarity and concision as they explain their research question, their findings, and its relevance to the Trent community; participants can use up to three PowerPoint slides as visual aids to support their talk.

Read more about the 2024 3-Minute Paper Competition

In 2024, 3MP took place in Nozhem Theatre in the Enwayaang Building on Wednesday, March 6 at 7pm. 

Why is it exciting?

Students develop essential communication skills in the planning, preparation, and performance of their talk. These skills are important as undergraduates move on to professional careers or graduate school, where they need to be able to describe their research, and its larger importance, in language that is accessible and engaging to a non-specialist audience.

Participation in 3-Minute Paper supports undergraduate students in the development of valuable skills for job interviews, networking, professional education, or graduate studies. The event provides students with opportunities to expand their resumes and portfolios.

This event showcases the wide range of undergraduate research opportunities at Trent and encourages students to learn about work beyond their own disciplines. Learn more from past participants:

Testimonial from 2016 3MP Participant, Kelly McLean:

"I participated in the 3MP competition last year, and it was very difficult to condense my honours thesis work into 3 short minutes. I currently work for the Canadian Wildlife Service and am representing my office this weekend at a climate change conference for youth. Once again I have to talk about my work in 3 short minutes! I will definitely use the skills I learned in the competition to prepare."

Eligibility & Application - Applications for 3MP 2025 coming soon!

Applications for 2025 open January 8, 2025 and close January 29, 2025. 

  1. Participants must be currently registered in the 3rd or 4th year of a Trent undergraduate degree program. The competition is open to students from Peterborough and Durham; further, spaces are available for students from all of Trent's colleges (Champlain, Eaton, Gzowski, Otonabee, Traill). The 3MP Committee works to ensure balanced representation between campuses, colleges, and programs of study.
  2. Presentations must be based on original research that is directly related to the student’s undergraduate thesis, major research project, or major research paper. Research does not need to be complete for a student to participate, but research should be in progress during the 2023-2024 academic year.
  3. Participants may individually present research from a group project with the permission of all group members.
  4. Presenters must agree to be photographed and video-taped and allow photos/videos to be shared publicly.
  5. All applicants must complete a written application by 4pm EST January 29, 2025 and must submit a short video by email before 11:59pm EST February 2, 2025. Details will be provided to all applicants in their application confirmation email.
  6. All participants must have approval from the faculty supervisor/course professor for which the research is assigned.

Rules

  1. Presentations are limited to three minutes maximum. Any competitor that exceeds the time limit will be disqualified.
  2. Presenters may use no more than three slides. Slides cannot include animations or transitions. No additional props or electronic media are permitted. All slides and presentation materials must be submitted according to deadlines set by the 3MP organizational committee. 
  3. Presenters may use notes or cue cards.
  4. Presentations are to be spoken word (e.g. No songs, poems).
  5. Presentations are considered to have commenced when a presenter starts their presentation through either movement or speech.
  6. Presentations are to commence from the stage.
  7. The decisions of the 3MP college panel and the 3MP competition judges are final.

Judging Criteria

The judging panel for the 3MP competition will be comprised of members of the Trent community.

(Judging criteria adapted from 3MT®, University of Queensland)

2024 Prizes

  • Office of Research Overall Prize: $250
  • Alumni Engagement and Services First Runner Up: $100
  • Centre for Teaching and Learning Second Runner Up: $75
  • President’s Office Audience Choice Prize: $150
  • President's Office Best Visuals Prize: $150
  • Journal of Undergraduate Studies at Trent (JUST) Social JUST-ice Prize: $100

Top prize winners also win publication of their script in the upcoming issue of the Journal of Undergraduate Studies at Trent

Watch Past 3MP Competition Videos

2024 Competition Event Video

2024 Prize Winners

  • Office of Research and Innovation Overall Prize: Samantha Caudle (Gzowski College; Biology), Extending Life in the Common Water Flea 
  • Alumni Engagement and Services First Runner Up Prize and Office of the President Best Visuals Prize: Haley Grieve (Gzowski College; Conservation Biology), The Secret Night-life of Salamanders: The Factors Impacting Nocturnal Salamander Foraging Patterns
  • Centre for Teaching and Learning Second Runner Up Prize: Anissah Rajpatee (Gzowski College; Indigenous Studies & Teacher Education), Land Based Learning: Reimagining Environmental Education 
  • Office of the President Audience Choice Prize and Journal of Undergraduate Studies at Trent Social JUST-ice Prize: John Smith (Durham-GTA; Child and Youth Studies & Psychology),  Dungeons, Dragons, & Neurodiversity: Fighting Demons for Friendship 

3MP 2023 - In-Person Event

2023 Competition Video

2023 Prize Winners

  • Office of Research Overall Prize and President's Office Audience Choice Award: Diya Shah (she/her), Otonabee College, To be or not to be - CRHR2 in Stress response
  • Alumni Engagement and Services 1st Runner Up Prize and President's Office Prize for Best Visual Aids: Lindsay Young (they/he), Champlain College, The deep end of the dating pool: Transgender exclusion in dating/sexual activity
  • Centre for Teaching and Learning 2nd Runner Up Prize: Abbey Politeski (she/her), Lady Eaton College, Cardiac cachexia: Do females do it better?
  • The Social JUST-ice Prize (from the Journal of Undergraduate Studies at Trent): Mehmood Kohistani (he/him), Durham-GTA, Refugee Youth Participation: Paving the Path to an Equitable Education 

Read more about the 2023 3-Minute Paper Competition

3MP 2022- Virtual Edition 

Photograph of 3MP 2023 participants in front of a presentation screen.

2022 Competition Video

2022 Prize Winners

  • Office of Research Overall Winner: Kieran Freitag (Biomedical Science, Champlain), The curious case of the missing TATA boxes in this waterborne parasite
  • Alumni Engagement and Services First Runner-Up Prize and Office of the President Audience Choice Prize: Mckenna Lowrie (Biology – Psychology, Otonabee), A Memory Trace in Two Systems: The HPC and Memory
  • Centre for Teaching and Learning Second Runner-Up Prize: Suruthe Janakan (Chemistry, Otonabee), Animal Neurotransmitters in Plants?
  • Office of the President Best Visuals Prize: Erin Giroux (Forensic Science, Gzowski), The Key to Unlocking Solutions to SARS-CoV-

Trent News Story, 2022: Astounding Research, Innovation and Passion Take the Screen 

3MP 2021 - Virtual Edition

2021 Competition Video 

2021 Prize Winners

  • Office of Research Overall Winner and Office of the President Best Visuals Prize, Ayan Niazi, Lady Eaton College: Proteins Behaving Badly! (Biology)
  • Alumni Engagement and Services First Runner-Up Prize, Nicole Leach, Gzowski College: Why Is Choosing A Sunscreen Still an Enigma? A Chemical Approach To Effective Decision Making (Chemistry)
  • Centre for Teaching and Learning Second Runner-Up Prize, Linda El-Ayday, Lady Eaton College: Working out a Solution: Exercise Therapy for Anxiety in Parkinson’s Disorder (Psychology)
  • Office of the President Audience Choice Prize, Arlene Ononiwu, Lady Eaton College: Building Technologies for Disease Detection (Biology)

3MP 2020 - In-Person Event

2020 Competition Video

2020 Prize Winners

  • Office of Research Overall Prize, Sam Blondeau (Durham-GTA/Traill), Child & Youth Studies/Sociology: "Squeegee Kids are Not Broken Windows!"
  • Alumni Affairs First Runner-Up, Katherine Nocera (Durham-GTA), Psychology: "We're All in This Together: The Influence of Family-Based Treatment on Adolescent Substance Use."
  • Centre for Teaching and Learning Second Runner-Up, Alissa Sallans (Gzowski College), International Development Studies, "Can "Poverty Alleviation" Sustain Poverty?"
  • President's Office Audience Choice Prize and Best Visuals Prize, Danielle Harper (Traill College), Biology: "Spice Up Your Life: Blood Vessel Formation and Cellular Stress"

Contact Us

Email 3mp@trentu.ca with your questions

3-Minute Paper Sponsors

Thanks to Champlain College, Gzowski College, Lady Eaton College, Otonabee College, Traill College, Trent Durham, & Academic Skills.

Thank you to prize sponsors: The Office of Research, Alumni Engagement and Services, Trent Centre for Teaching and Learning, the Journal of Undergraduate Studies, and The Office of the President

Trent University respectfully acknowledges it is located on the treaty and traditional territory of the Mississauga Anishnaabeg. We offer our gratitude to First Peoples for their care for, and teachings about, our earth and our relations. May we honour those teachings.

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