Advice for Poster-givers

About the poster session

(based on instructions for PolMeth 2003, Minnesota)

Overview:

Some of you are veterans of methods conferences, but about half of you are not. All of you will be interested to hear more about your responsibilities for the meeting. We are going to have a "poster session" for you to present your research. Now for the details.

What is a "poster"?

Oddly enough, poster sessions are a normal component of natural science conferences, and they are actually the vehicle through which an overwhelming proportion of information is passed during those meetings. So, don't be surprised if this is a presentation format you are not accustomed to.

What should you present?

For students far along on their dissertation, this is an opportunity to get members of the methods section to review your thesis work. For others this is a chance to get an enormous amount of feedback on future conference, working, or late-stage papers, research and grant proposals, as well as new ideas that might potentially become part of a dissertation or research project. Given that the topic has already been submitted as part of your application and approved by the program committee, the question is really what part of this research will prove to be the most useful as a poster in this setting. In general, the audience will be interested in your application of methodologies (broadly defined) to some data-analytic problem. No matter what is presented, don't be afraid to highlight areas that are not totally worked out, since this is exactly where you might get the most benefit from feedback.

In all cases, your poster should have a title, an abstract, and whatever additional information is useful to get across to us what your research involves. That can be short pieces of text, brief discussion of the theoretical background or lists of hypotheses you are testing, and tables or graphs. Keep it simple, but make sure your poster gets your research across in a brief and effective manner. You might prepare a short (five to ten minute) verbal presentation which you can give to people who want to be "talked" through your research. The amount of feedback you will generate will be directly proportionate to how effectively you present your work in your poster.

How is the session structured?

You should bring your poster to the Union Ballroom, located at the terminus of the central corridor on the 2nd floor of the Michigan Union (See the floorplans), at 5:30pm, and set it up by pinning it to posterboard and placing it on an easel. The poster session will begin at 5:45pm. The session traditionally takes the form of an informal reception. Participants will circulate through the ballroom looking at the posters. The session is informal; however, you should be available near your poster so participants can have the opportunity to stop by and talk with you about your work. After the session ends, you may take your poster down.

Again, this is not meant to be a high-stress affair. The participants in the methodology meetings have long expressed a great deal of interest in getting to know the other participants better, both personally and intellectually. The poster session at the upcoming meeting should help us all meet that goal.

The design of the poster

(adapted from PolMeth 2007 instructions)

A good poster is seldom constructed from filling the posterboard with standard 8.5 by 11 inch printouts. We strongly suggest designing and producing the poster as a poster. There are a variety of software packages that can be used to design posters including Microsoft Power Point, LaTeX, and Abode Illustrator. Below are some links to get you started:

• Microsoft Power Point
  
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• LaTeX
  
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• Adobe Illustrator
  
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For more information

If you have any other questions about the poster session, do not hesitate to contact directly: Rob Franzese or Bryce Corrigan.