Competitions

• Oral Presentation Skills Competition Guidelines & Application

  Oral Presentation Skills Competition - Guidelines

  Oral presentations sessions are designed to give presenters an opportunity to formally present their research to the GSBS and larger TMC audience. The purpose of the presentation is to clearly convey your research to an educated scientific audience. Presentations should include sufficient information for audience members to understand the methods, results, and significance of the research.

  Applications will open Monday, April 14, 2025.

  The deadline to apply for consideration for the competition is Thursday, May 8, 2025.

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  Eligibility:

  All GSBS degree students who have affiliated with a primary research advisor, and are in good academic standing, may apply.

  Format:

  • Oral presentations will be presented in-person during GSRD at Cooley Center. Students must apply to present an oral presentation. Ten contestants will be selected as finalists to compete. 
  • Each oral presentation will be allotted 10 minutes consisting of a 7-minute presentation and a 3-minute question & answer period before a panel of judges and the public audience.
  • Finalists should plan to be present for the entirety of their assigned oral session. The order of presentations within each session will be assigned randomly and delivered in the order indicated in the GSRD program.
  • Students will compete in two categories: (1) Pre-candidacy PhD students, MS students and SMS; and (2) Post-candidacy PhD students. Students should apply to the category that best matches their current status at the time of application.
  • Finalists competing in the Oral Presentation Skills competition may also apply to present a poster. Space permitting, they may present their poster, but they may not compete and their poster number will be labeled “NC” [non-competing].

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  Application link: 2025 Oral Presentation Skills Competition Registration

  Application Materials:

  • Research abstract: This summary should be written in language understandable by a broad general science audience and should be a concise and engaging description of the student’s research project that includes the title, background/objective, brief methods, results/progress, conclusions and future work. The abstract body should be at least 150 words, but no more than 300 words. Abstracts not meeting these criteria will be disqualified.
  • Curriculum vitae: Include past speaking and/or poster presentation experiences.
  • Approval form from advisor addressing the student's presentation skills. 

  
  Selection and award criteria:

  • Preliminary judges will select the finalists and students will be notified on May 20, 2025. In the preliminary phase, the project abstract and other application materials will be evaluated for scientific merit, and appeal to a general science audience. Evidence of prior presentations will be taken into consideration, but is not a requirement.
  • Finalists will present their oral presentations to faculty and/or PhD-level research scientist judges. Presentations will be evaluated on speaking skills/delivery, scientific content, and overall quality of the presentation. Winners will be announced at the GSRD Awards Ceremony.
  • Rubric for Oral Presentation Skills Competition
    
    

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  Prizes:

  • Category 1: Pre-Candidacy PhD, MS & SMS
    
    
    • 1^st prize: $1,000
    • 2^nd prize:   $500
      
      
  • Category 2: Post-Candidacy PhD
    
    
    • 1^st prize: $1,000
    • 2^nd prize:   $500

  
  Please note: cash prizes may be subject to tax
  

• Oral Presentation Skills Competition Finalists

  Pre-Candidacy PhD, MS & SMS Finalists - 9:35AM listed in alphabetical order - will present in random order
  Student Name	Category	Advisor	Program
  Cara Biddle	Pre-Candidacy PhD	Kendra Carmon PhD	Molecular and Translational Biology
  Megan Fisher	Pre-Candidacy PhD	Dung-Fang Lee PhD	Cancer Biology
  Robert Lwanga	MS	Xiaoyi Yuan PhD	Therapeutics & Pharmacology
  Alexandra Miller	Pre-Candidacy PhD	Ji Young Yoo PhD	Therapeutics & Pharmacology
  Annette Wu	Pre-Candidacy PhD	Wen Jiang MD, PhD Betty Y.S. Kim MD, PhD	Immunology

  Post-Candidacy Finalists - 10:45AM listed in alphabetical order - will present in random order
  Student Name	Category	Advisor	Program
  Shannon Erhardt	Post-Candidacy PhD	Jun Wang PhD	Genetics & Epigenetics
  Chase Hutchins	Post-Candidacy PhD	Alemayehu Gorfe PhD	Molecular and Translational Biology
  Spring Hwang	Post-Candidacy PhD	Jian Hu PhD	Cancer Biology
  Mya Rodriguez	Post-Candidacy PhD	Andrea Stavoe PhD	Neuroscience
  Zecheng Yang	Post-Candidacy PhD	Wantong Yao PhD	Immunology

• Poster Competition Guidelines & Application

  Poster Session - Guidelines

  Poster sessions are designed to give presenters an opportunity to discuss their research with colleagues and other researchers. The purpose of the poster is to visually stimulate interest in the research, to present sufficient information for viewers to understand the methods, results, and significance of the research, and to promote conversations and networking among GSRD attendees.

  Applications will open Monday, April 14, 2025.

  The deadline to apply for consideration for the competition is Thursday, May 15, 2025.

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  Eligibility

  • All GSBS students who have participated in a research project at the GSBS, and are in good academic standing, are eligible to participate.
    
    

  Format:

  • Posters will be presented in-person during GSRD at Cooley Center. Students must apply to present a poster. Space is limited to 40 contestants, so students are encouraged to apply early.
  • Students are responsible for printing their posters [size: no larger than 3.3' H x 3.5' W].
  • Poster template and GSBS logo downloads are here.
  • Posters will be on display during the entirety of GSRD. The day before the GSRD (Wednesday, June 12) Poster Session, finalists must set up their posters in the afternoon at Cooley Center. If a finalist cannot go in person, they may ask another student or the Student Affairs staff to set up their poster for them. Each poster board will be numbered. Presenters should attach their posters to the board number corresponding to the number assigned to their poster in the GSRD Program, which will be emailed prior to set up. Presenters should remove their posters at the end of GSRD between the hours of 4:30-6:00 pm. [Presenters are encouraged to display their posters during the reception.]
  • On the day of GSRD, students will present their posters during their assigned session. Students should plan to stand with their posters until their assigned session is completed and they have presented to their faculty and/or PhD-level research scientist judges.
  • Students will compete in two categories: (1) Pre-candidacy PhD students, MS students and SMS; and (2) Post-candidacy PhD students. Students should apply to the category that best matches their current status at the time of application.
  • Students who are chosen as finalists in the GSRD Oral Presentation Skills competition may not compete in the poster session. They may, if space permits, still present a poster and their poster number will be labeled “NC” [non-competing].
    
    

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  Application link: 2025 Poster Presentation Application

  Application materials:

  Research abstract: This summary should be written in language understandable by a general scientific audience and should be a concise and engaging description of the student’s research project. The abstract body should be at least 150 words, but no more than 300 words. Abstracts not meeting these criteria will be disqualified.

  Your abstract should include:

  • • • Title
      • Author List
      • Background and Objectives/Hypothesis
      • Methods (Brief)
      • Results/Progress
      • Conclusions and Future Work

   

  Selection and award criteria:

  • Preliminary judges will select the finalists based on the quality of abstract, and students will be notified on May 29th, 2025.
  • Finalists will present their posters to faculty and/or PhD-level research scientist judges. Posters will be evaluated on the inclusion, quality, and details of the key sections of the poster (see Rubric below), as well as the presenter's level of content knowledge and delivery. Winners will be announced at the GSRD Awards Ceremony.
  • Rubric for poster competition.
    
    

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  Prizes:   

  • Category 1: Pre-Candidacy PhD, MS & SMS
    
    
  • $500 Best Poster - a total of four (4) winners will be selected to receive a Best Poster award
  • $300 Best 1^st-Year
    
    
  • Category 2: Post-Candidacy PhD
    
    
  • $500 Best Poster - a total of four (4) winners will be selected to receive a Best Poster award

  
  Please note: cash prizes may be subject to tax

  
  

• Poster Competition Finalists

  Poster Finalists - Session A - 12PM listed in alphabetical order
  First Name	Last Name	Category	Advisor	Program
  Bhargavi	Brahmendra Barathi	Post-Candidacy PhD	Jason Huse, MD, PhD	Genetics & Epigenetics
  Yuqing	Cai	MS	Wen Li, PhD	Neuroscience
  Vicky	Chuong	Post-Candidacy PhD	Fabricio Do Monte, DVM, PhD	Neuroscience
  Anna	DeBruine	Pre-Candidacy PhD	Vihang Narkar, PhD	Therapeutics & Pharmacology
  Stephen	Farmer	Post-Candidacy PhD	Sheng Zhang, PhD	Molecular and Translational Biology
  Peyton	High	Post-Candidacy PhD	Kendra S. Carmon, PhD	Molecular and Translational Biology
  Gabrielle	Krouse	Pre-Candidacy PhD	Sunil Krishnan, MD, FACP, FASTRO, FAIMBE, FRSC, FInstP	Therapeutics & Pharmacology
  Hyuk Jean	Kwon	Pre-Candidacy PhD	Andrea Viale, MD	Cancer Biology
  Kaylene	Lu	Post-Candidacy PhD	Jian Hu, PhD	Cancer Biology
  Mariana	Najjar	Pre-Candidacy PhD	Hui-Wen Lo, PhD	Cancer Biology
  Beatriz	Schueng Zancanela	Pre-Candidacy PhD	Raghu Kalluri, MD, PhD	Molecular and Translational Biology
  Cheng-En	Shen	Pre-Candidacy PhD	Yuan Pan, PhD	Cancer Biology
  Yueh-Ming (Camellia)	Shyu	Pre-Candidacy PhD	Kendra Carmon, PhD	Therapeutics & Pharmacology
  Alec	Solis	1st Year PhD	Kristen E. Pauken, PhD	Immunology
  Heather	Tsong	Post-Candidacy PhD	Andrea Stavoe, PhD	Genetics & Epigenetics
  Phillip	Urbanczyk	Pre-Candidacy PhD	Consuelo Walss-Bass, PhD	Neuroscience
  Mitheera	V	Post-Candidacy PhD	Guillermina Lozano, PhD	Genetics & Epigenetics
  Amanda	Warner	Post-Candidacy PhD	Michelle Hildebrandt, PhD	Cancer Biology
  Sydney	Wilbon	Pre-Candidacy PhD	Mikhail Kolonin, PhD	Molecular and Translational Biology
  Jiani	Xing	MS	Jian Hu, PhD	Cancer Biology

  Poster Finalists - Session B - 1PM listed in alphabetical order
  First Name	Last Name	Category	Advisor	Program
  Jack	Adams	Pre-Candidacy PhD	Ali Azhdarinia, PhD	Therapeutics & Pharmacology
  Mirrah	Bashir	Pre-Candidacy PhD	Daniel Frigo, PhD	Molecular and Translational Biology
  Yuhan	Cao	Pre-Candidacy PhD	Qingchun Tong, PhD	Neuroscience
  Kate	Cho	Post-Candidacy PhD	Kadir Akdemir, PhD	Cancer Biology
  Jocelynn	Colunga Minutti	MS	Roza Nurieva, PhD	Immunology
  Madison	Grayson	Post-Candidacy PhD	Radhe Mohan, PhD, FAAPM, FASTRO	Medical Physics
  Sophia	Huang	Pre-Candidacy PhD	Vihang Narkar, PhD	Molecular and Translational Biology
  Romeesa	Khan	Pre-Candidacy PhD	Louise McCullough, MD, PhD	Immunology
  Ece	Kilinc	Pre-Candidacy PhD	Jian Hu, PhD	Cancer Biology
  Phuoc Minh Quan	Mai	1st Year PhD	Sunil Krishnan, MD	Therapeutics & Pharmacology
  Richa	Nayak	Post-Candidacy PhD	Yejing Ge, PhD	Genetics & Epigenetics
  Renee	Rubiano	1st Year PhD	Alejandro Aballay, PhD	Genetics & Epigenetics
  Ryan	Sloan	Post-Candidacy PhD	Jayhun Lee, PhD	Microbiology & Infectious Diseases
  Shraddha	Subramanian	Post-Candidacy PhD	Kendra S. Carmon, PhD	Cancer Biology
  María	Torres Carrizalez	MS	Vahid Afshar-Kharghan, MD	Immunology
  Hsiang-Ching	Tseng	1st Year PhD	Kuang-Lei Tsai, PhD	Molecular and Translational Biology
  Catalina	Valdes	MS	Rodrigo Morales, PhD	Neuroscience
  Boxuan	Yang	1st Year PhD	Burton Dickey, MD	Not Yet Affiliated
  Haoyi	Yang	1st Year PhD	Wei Cao, PhD	Neuroscience
  Dexin	Yang	Pre-Candidacy PhD	Ruoyan Li, PhD	Quantitative Sciences

• Elevator Pitch Competition Guidelines & Application

  Elevator Pitch Contests - Guidelines
  

  The scientific Elevator Pitch is a 90-second summary of the student’s research project intended for an educated, lay audience. The scientific elevator pitch is an excellent career tool for students, helping them to establish credibility, form relationships with other scientists, and gain support for their ideas. It also helps students clarify and articulate their thoughts, build professional confidence, and communicate across disciplines.

  Applications will open Monday, April 14, 2025.

  The deadline to apply for consideration for the competition is Thursday, May 15, 2025.

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  Students are encouraged to attend special workshops to prepare for this competition:
  
  Tamara Laskowski, PhD, GSBS alum and Sr. Director at Lonza will facilitate the virtual 2025 Elevator Pitch Competition Workshop. This is a two-part workshop that will assist students in preparing a 90-second elevator pitch. 

  Wednesday, May 14 and Tuesday, May 20

  2-3 p.m.

  Zoom link will be provided to all that register. 

  
  Sign up to attend: go.uth.edu/2025EPWorkshop

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  Eligibility:

  All GSBS degree students, who are in good academic standing, are eligible to compete.

  
  Format:

  • Elevator pitches will be presented in-person at GSRD at Cooley Center. Students must apply to present an elevator pitch. Twenty contestants will be selected as finalists to compete. 
  • Each elevator pitch will be allotted 90 seconds. The time will begin once a contestant starts speaking. Speakers may use note cards as long as they do not read straight through, and/or may use small props/objects. Speakers are not allowed to use PowerPoint slides. There will be no time allotted for questions during the session.
  • Elevator pitches should be accessible to a non-specialist audience with a basic college education, succinct, and last no more than 90 seconds; they should be well organized and easy to follow, delivered in an engaging manner, and have impact. The speeches should contain key elements commonly found in scientific presentations, including an introduction/background, description of the gap in knowledge or research question being addressed, a brief description of method(s), results if they have been obtained, a statement of significance, and possible next steps if applicable. In addition, the delivery of the pitch should be enthusiastic, confident, conversational rather than overly formal, and use accessible language that minimizes jargon.
  • Finalists should plan to be present for the entirety of the elevator pitch competition session. The order of presentations will be assigned randomly and delivered in the order indicated in the GSRD program.
  • Students will compete in two categories: (1) Pre-candidacy PhD students, MS students and SMS; and (2) Post-candidacy PhD students. Students should apply to the category that best matches their current status at the time of application.
  • Students who are chosen as finalists in the GSRD Elevator Pitch competition may not compete in the poster session. They may, if space permits, still present a poster and their poster number will be labeled “NC” [non-competing].
    
    

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  Application link: 2025 Elevator Pitch Application

  Application materials:

  • Tentative title for elevator pitch
  • Short description (1-2 sentences) of the impact, relevance, or importance of the research as it relates to science or a lay audience
    
    

  Selection and award criteria:

  • Preliminary judges will select twenty finalists and students will be notified on May 29, 2025. Evidence of prior presentations will be taken into consideration, but is not a requirement.
  • Finalists will present their elevator pitches to a panel of judges on June 26, 2025 that includes faculty, PhD-level research scientists, and lay community members. Elevator pitches will be evaluated on the delivery of the pitch, organization and engagement with the pitch content, and impact. The pitch will not be evaluated on the complexity of the project, whether experimental results have been obtained so far, minor grammatical mistakes, or speaking with a non-English accent. The audience will choose the People's Choice Award winner. Winners will be announced at the GSRD Awards Ceremony.
  • Rubric for elevator pitch competition.

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  Prizes:   

  • Category 1: Pre-Candidacy PhD, MS & SMS
    
    
    • 1^st prize: $1,000
    • 2^nd prize: $500
    • People’s choice: $300
      
      
  • Category 2: Post-Candidacy PhD
    
    
    • 1^st prize: $1,000
    • 2^nd prize: $500
    • People’s choice: $300
      
      

  • Category 3: First Year Students
    
    
  • • 1^st prize: $300

  Please note: cash prizes may be subject to tax

• Elevator Pitch Competition Finalists

  Elevator Pitch Finalists listed in alphabetical order - will present in random order
  Last Name	First Name	Category	Advisor	Program
  Aya	Albittar	MS	Sachel Shukla, PhD	Immunology
  Paula	Bender	Pre-Candidacy	Kristin Eckel-Mahan, PhD	Neuroscience
  Chaitali	Bhadiadra	Post-Candidacy	Liuqing Yang, PhD	Immunology
  Kiara	Bornes	Pre-Candidacy	Callie Kwartler, PhD	Genetics and Epigenetics
  Diana	Carrasco	Pre-Candidacy	Paige Taylor, PhD	Medical Physics
  Chi Yin	Ching	1st year	Ronald DePinho, MD	Cancer Biology
  Diya	Choudhary	1st year		Medical Physics
  Chih Wei (Adriana)	Chu	1st year		no affiliation
  Shanli	Ding	1st year	Osama Mawlawi, PhD	Quantitative Sciences
  Chrystine	Gallegos	Post-Candidacy	Carmen Dessauer, PhD	Neuroscience
  Skylar	Gay	Post-Candidacy	Laurence Court, PhD	Medical Physics
  Mo-Fan	Huang	Post-Candidacy	Dung-Fang Lee, PhD	Genetics and Epigenetics
  Shruthi	Kannan	Pre-Candidacy	Pavan Bachireddy, MD	Immunology
  Srinath	Lakshmivenkatesh	Post-Candidacy	Sachet Shukla, PhD	Cancer Biology
  Thomas	Mitchell	Pre-Candidacy	Peter Van Loo, PhD and Kadir Akdemir, PhD	Quantitative Sciences
  Rachel	Morris	Pre-Candidacy	Kristen Pauken, PhD	Immunology
  Sara	Sainani	MS	Giulio Draetta, MD, PhD and Andrea Viale, MD	Cancer Biology
  Sara	Sanz Juste	Post-Candidacy	Bartholomew Blaine, PhD	Genetics and Epigenetics
  Madison	Shyer	Post-Candidacy	Paul Schulz, PhD	Neuroscience
  Sabona	Simbassa	Post-Candidacy	Jayhun Lee, PhD	Microbiology and Infectious Disease
  Erin	Snoddy	Post-Candidacy	Kristy Brock, PhD	Medical Physics
  Candise	Tat	1st year		no affiliation
  Ngoc Tuyet	Tra	1st year	Sunil Krishnan, MD	Therapeutics and Pharmacology
  Mackenzie	Wienke	1st year	Charles Ishak, PhD	Genetics and Epigenetics
  Yun	Yan	Post-Candidacy	Nicholas Navin, PhD	Quantitative Sciences
  Xue (Kelly)	Yang	1st year	Theresa Guise, MD	Cancer Biology
  Maggie	Zhou	1st year	Stephanie Watowich, PhD	Immunology