Preparing a poster

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Preparing a poster
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Purpose

• Posters are usually prepared for presenting your
  work ( you) at local / national / international
  meetings
• Your career will not be ruined by a bad poster
  but a good poster could help your career by
  getting you noticed
• The aim of the poster is to interest and inform
  your audience
• The casual reader (most common) should be able to
  get the key points immediately
• The interested reader should be able to get a
  clear picture of the nature of your work
• The expert will ask you additional questions

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Before starting

• MRes students should have the written report
  completed before starting the poster
• The poster is not simply a shortened version of
  the report
• PhD students will most often be reporting ongoing
  work
• Check on what you can show in public!
• It needs to be visual and must attract a reader
• Make the aims, objectives and conclusions clear
  and include selected data and diagrams
• You will need to be present at the poster
  presentation session

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Practicalities

• Organisers normally prescribe the maximum area
  available for display
• This is typically 1 metre wide x 1.5 metre high
• A0 is 841mm 1189mm (1 m2)
• Think about what you will do with the poster
  after the meeting
• The new poster boards will fit 86cm x 116cm!
• The poster should be prepared in PPT using page
  setup custom dimensions
• Set at print size and view at 100
• Show example

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More Practicalities

• There are two places where you can print
• Angie MacDonald (A.J.MacDonald_at_bath.ac.uk)
• Printing Unit (Building 8W level 1)
• Contact in advance to determine availability and
  turnaround time (usually one day with Angie,
  usually more with the print unit)
• You will have to pay extra for lamination
• You must include your name and an accounting code
  when you order
• I will give these details to the MRes students in
  March

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Even More Practicalities

• Black typeface on a pale or white background is
  safe
• If you use a background picture ensure it is
  faint
• Use one, sans serif font (eg Arial, Verdana,
  Comic Sans MS)
• Meetings are often crowded and viewers may not be
  able to get close
• Is the title short, clear and appropriate and
  visible from at least 3 metres? Typically Arial
  90
• Are the major headings clearly visible from a
  distance of 2 metres? Typically Arial 40
• Does the supporting text follow the main headings
  and is legible at 1.5 metres? Typically Arial
  30
• References can be even smaller

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Two posters that both won internal prizes

• Lulu poster
• Introduction 209 words
• Material and Methods 180 words
• Results 209 words
• Conclusions 126 words
• Total 724
• 14 references
• Hassan poster
• Abstract 71 words.
• Introduction 118
• Results 130
• Conclusions 105
• Total 424
• 7 references
• Both very visual both tell a simple story both
  catch your eye

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Typical Format

• Informative Title all authors with you first,
  principal supervisor(s) last and others in
  between affiliation (department, university and
  collaborating institutions) with addresses your
  email address
• Logo(s) (including sponsors) should be somewhere.
  See lthttp//www.bath.ac.uk/graphics/logos-for-prin
  t/gt
• Typical content
• Summary and / or abstract (first or last)
• Introduction or background
• (Some) methods and materials
• Appropriate supporting data (graphs / photos /
  diagrams / tables)
• Critical evaluation of results
• Future work / The way forward
• References acknowledgements

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Basic design and layout

• Go to your existing sources (reports, draft
  paper, lab book, etc)
• Decide what story you want to tell (Title)
• Assemble existing components of the story (for
  example selected figures, table(s), useful
  diagrams, key method, abstract, key
  conclusion(s), core references (esp. your own),
  etc)
• Write text, put them as boxes with correct font
  size
• For images adjust to suitable display size
• Most tables are likely to require simplification
• One representative figure / table / graph /image
  may be sufficient
• Do you need any new figures? Internet sources?
  citation!
• Assemble on full size poster in a coherent way
  (with full width title/authors/affiliation
  (logos?) across top)
• Do they fit?
• If yes, it is now a matter of design and clarity
  of purpose
• If not you have decide whether you have too much
  content (that may detract from core message)
  and/or it is too wordy / data-rich (so can be
  edited down to size)
• Keep doing improvements, print an A4 version
  and show to others
• Check for typos, etc and print final version

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Reading it

• Mounting is often Velcro stickers, but take
  drawing pins and Blu-Tack
• Do the major headings convey the essential
  message for readers?
• Is the presentation arranged to provide a clear
  order for reading or does it leave the reader
  confused?
• Is the text clear, succinct and free of
  redundancy?
• Does the composition of the poster enhance the
  smooth and logical flow of ideas?
• Does the poster draw attention to things that are
  of greater importance and subordinate visually
  those which are of lesser importance?
• Does the poster have a suitable amount of blank
  space or is it crowded and chaotic?

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Reading it

• Is the composition distracting and takes
  attention away from the content or does it
  exhibit clear visual lines and organization?
• Do the colour and texture of the background serve
  to unify the poster?
• Do figures enhance the message or detract from
  it?
• Are they well integrated into the poster in terms
  of size, colour, text format and placement?
• Can the poster be improved by coloured borders,
  bullets or blocks to call attention to specific
  text or figures?
• Are there appropriate references and
  acknowledgements?

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First impressions by visitors

• Can they immediately work out what the poster is
  about?
• As they get closer (1.5m) can they see where to
  start reading
• Can they decide quickly whether it is worth
  spending time there?
• If they stay can they pick out the relevant bits
  easily?
• Can they find author contacts easily (photo,
  Email, A4 handout)?

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Questions / Assessment

• Many societies have poster prize competitions
  (enter for your CV)
• MRes students will be formally assessed
• You should be able to explain every aspect of the
  poster including anything in the introductory
  text
• You will be evaluated on the competence with
  which you handle questions

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Poster viewing

• Have a look around the department for good and
  less good examples
• Ask yourself why you thought that and copy from
  good examples
• This is called best practice not plagiarism!

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Any Qs?