The Graduate Student Center at California State University, Bakersfield will host the first Grad Slam Competition on Friday, Dec. 6, from 3 to 5 p.m. in Humanities Classroom Building 1107. The event is free and open to the public.
During the Grad Slam, or 3MT (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.
“This is great opportunity for the campus and larger community to learn about the amazing creative and academic work that is being done by CSUB graduate students,” said Dr. Debra Jackson, associate dean of Graduate and Undergraduate Studies.
A team of very distinguished guest judges will score each presentation according to four criteria: comprehension, content, engagement and communication. Judges include former CSUB Alumni Hall of Fame inductees Sheryl Chalupa, Jeremy Adams and Debbie Wood.
In preparation for the CSUB Grad Slam, a series of 90-minute 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 workshops were led by marketing and corporate image consultant Jacquelyn Jans, owner and creative director of Purveyor House Shannon LaBare, and KGET news anchor Maddie Janssen.
The winner of the inaugural CSUB Grad Slam will be invited to participate in the fourth annual regional Grad Slam hosted by the Western Association of Graduate Schools (WAGS) at its conference in March 2020. The winner will join nearly two dozen collegiate competitors from Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, North Dakota, Utah and New Mexico as well as other CSU campuses.
For additional information, please visit www.csub.edu/graduatestudentcenter.