CSUB hosting Grad Slam competition on Dec. 3

Graduate students to give short, TEDx Talk-style presentations

By California State University, Bakersfield

November 30^th, 2021

The Graduate Student Center at California State University, Bakersfield will host the third Grad Slam Competition on Friday, Dec. 3, from 3 to 5 p.m. through Zoom invite. The event is free and open to the public.

During the Grad Slam, or 3MTtm (three-minute thesis) competition, master’s and doctoral students will showcase their research through short TEDx Talk-style presentations. In a span of three minutes, participants will display their research using one PowerPoint slide and present their research using language that not only their peers, but also non-specialists will understand.

“CSUB Grad Slam competition showcases our students prolonged, patient process of gestating research ideas that they bring to fruition in exciting findings that have theoretical clarity and real-life application,” said Dr. Luis Vega, interim associate dean of graduate and undergraduate studies. “Advancing science through original research is a cornerstone of graduate studies at CSUB.“

A team of distinguished guest judges will score each presentation according to four criteria: comprehension, content, engagement and communication. Judges include former and future CSUB Alumni Hall of Fame inductees Raji Brar, Sheryl Chalupa, and Terri Church, as well as nationally syndicated consumer and legal affairs newspaper columnist, Bakersfield attorney H. Dennis Beaver.

In preparation for the CSUB Grad Slam, three skill-building workshops were offered for interested students. These workshops provided a basic overview of the competition, rules and judging criteria, as well as guidance on crafting a memorable message, designing a compelling visual presentation, and communicating with confidence.

The winner of the CSUB Grad Slam will be invited to participate in the sixth annual regional Grad Slam hosted by the Western Association of Graduate Schools (WAGS) at its conference in Denver Colorado, March 20-23, 2022. Collegiate competitors include students from Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, North Dakota, Utah and New Mexico as well as other CSU campuses.

In addition, CSUB Grad Slam top two ranked students will be invited to compete in the second annual CSU Grad Slam competition, involving all our CSU campuses and to take place in May 2022.