Graduate education is the heart of every great university. Graduate students come to UCLA to make creative contributions and research discoveries that advance human knowledge.

Grad Slam is a campus- and UC-wide competition that showcases and awards the best 3-minute research talks by graduate students. Think TED Talks on steroids. The competition aims to strengthen graduate students’ presentation and networking skills, as well as their ability to distill down and articulate their research concisely and effectively to a non-specialist audience.

Grad Slam is comprised of preliminary and semi-final rounds, culminating in a final competition and watch party on March 3, 2016 that will be broadcast live via an Internet feed.  There will also be information sessions, public speaking workshops and small group coaching sessions provided to students to help them prepare for the competition.

Co-Sponsors

• Graduate Division – Robin L. Garrell, Dean, Graduate Division & Vice Provost, Graduate Education
• Office of the Chancellor – Gene D. Block, Chancellor
• Graduate Students Association (GSA) – Milan Chatterjee, GSA President; Nicholas Berman, GSA Events Director

View the Grad Slam Flyer.

Grad Slam Schedule

Who’s Competing and When? – UPDATED 2/26/16

Demographics of our Grad Slam Participants

Final Competition Watch Party and Grad Bar (flyer invitation)

Preliminary Rounds

Tuesday, February 23
Round 1:  9:00 am – 12:00 pm, 1302 Perloff Hall, Decafe
Round 2: 2:00 pm – 5:00 pm, 1302 Perloff Hall, Decafe

Wednesday, February 24
Round 3:  9:00 am – 12:00 pm, 2033 Young Hall
Round 4:  2:00 pm – 5:00 pm, 2033 Young Hall

 

Semi-Final Rounds

Tuesday, March 1
Round 5: 9:00 am – 12:00 pm, Charles E. Young Research Library, Room 11360

Tyler Watson, Environmental Health Sciences – Farm in the City: Improving Nutrition and Health Through Local Food in Los Angeles

Samantha Mikaiel, Radiological Sciences – Innovative Real-Time Imaging for MRI-Guided Interventions

Alexandra Polasko, Civil and Environmental Engineering – Discovering New Talent In Microbes!

Victoria Tseng, Epidemiology – Cataract Surgery and Mortality in the United States Population

Courtney Young, Molecular Biology – An end to Duchenne: gene editing for muscular dystrophy

Laura Haney, Astronomy – How a Freak Accident in Space Saved the Earth

Calvin Brown, Electrical Engineering – Learning to Beat Disease

Mayank Jog, Bioengineering – Imaging Electric Currents

Alexander Thiele, Engineering – Phase Change Materials for Energy-Efficient Buildings

Cynthia Kusters, Epidemiology – Genetic Variants Among Parkinson’s Patients and its Potential Impact on Personalized Treatment Plans

Olivia Ellis, Environmental Health Science – How Clean Are Operating Rooms?

Tuesday, March 1
Round 6: 1:30 pm – 4:30 pm, Charles E. Young Research Library, Room 11360

Qiming Shao, Electrical Engineering – Magnetic Skyrmions: Building a Better Computer Chip

Yang Shen, Mechanical Engineering – Virtual Reality-Based Bilateral Movement Training in Upper Extremity Post-Stroke Rehabilitation

Erica Onugha, English – When Forced Labor Leaves No Time to Parent

Jia Feng, History – The Emperor’s Coffer: The Qing Imperial Fiscal Separation Between Privy Purse and State Treasury (1644-1912)

Calvin Ho, Sociology – Rolling out the red carpet for the best and the brightest

Nerve Macaspac, Geography – Insurgent Peace: Local Peacebuilding Among Indigenous Peoples in the Cordillera Region, Philippines

Philip Bulterys, Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics – Disarming Deadly Bacteria

Hsien-Liang Tseng, Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences – Is Black Carbon a Culprit of the Severe Drought in the Western United States?

Krystle Cobian, Graduate School of Education & Information Studies – The Science of Developing More Scientists

Kyleigh DePetro, Integrative Biology and Physiology – How Walk Again After Spinal Cord Injury

Kaitlyn Hood, Mathematics – Using Math to Build Design Better Blood Tests

Patrick Bourke, Higher Education and Organizational Change –  Campus Pride: The College Selection Process for LGBQ Students

Gary Li, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering – Traveling to Mars with Immortal Plasma Rockets

 

Final Competition – Watch Party & Grad Bar

Thursday, March 3
5:00 pm – 7:30 pm,  James West Alumni Center, Collins Conference Room

 

Courtney Young, Molecular Biology – An end to Duchenne: gene editing for muscular dystrophy

Victoria Tseng, Epidemiology  – Cataract Surgery and Mortality in the United States Population

Hsien-Liang Tseng, Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences – Is Black Carbon a Culprit of the Severe Drought in the Western United States?

Alexander Thiele, Mechanical Engineering – Phase Change Materials for Energy-Efficient Buildings

Erica Onugha, English – When Forced Labor Leaves No Time to Parent

Samantha Mikaiel, Radiological Sciences – Innovative Real-Time Imaging for MRI-Guided Interventions

Nerve Macaspac, Geography – Insurgent Peace: Local Peacebuilding Among Indigenous Peoples in the Cordillera Region, Philippines

Gary Li, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering – Traveling to Mars with Immortal Plasma Rockets

Mayank Jog, Bioengineering – Imaging Electric Currents

Philip Bulterys, Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics – Disarming Deadly Bacteria

University of California Grad Slam

Friday, April 22

11:30 am – LinkedIn headquarters, San Francisco

The UCLA campus winner will travel to San Francisco to compete in the UC Grad Slam competition.
The event is invitation only but will be broadcast live via video stream.

 

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Driving Directions to UCLA
Locate UCLA by zip code (90095) or by street address (405 Hilgard Avenue). Call 310-825-4321 for recorded directions. UCLA’s main campus is bounded by Sunset Boulevard. on the north and Le Conte Avenue. on the south; the east border is Hilgard Avenue and the west border is Gayley Avenue.

Visitor parking at UCLA    |  Metro Trip Planner

University of California Grad Slam Championship

Gary Li, UCLA’s Grad Slam winner will travel to San Francisco to compete in the UC Grad Slam competition on Friday, April 22, 2016.

In this 2nd annual UC system-wide tournament, the first-place winners from each of the 10 campus competitions will compete to explain their research in terms that will interest, excite and engage the public, and they have to do so before the clock runs out … in three minutes!

UC President Janet Napolitano will serve as emcee and the winner will be determined by a distinguished panel of judges representing industry, government and higher education leaders.

Winners will share $10,000 in prize money.

• First Prize: $6,000
• Second Prize: $3,000
• Third-Prize: $1,000

The event is invitation only, but will be broadcast live via video stream.

• The competition is open to all currently registered and enrolled UCLA Master’s and doctoral graduate students.
• Students must be registered and enrolled during Winter Quarter 2016 in order to participate in the Grad Slam and to be eligible to receive any prize.
• Students on an official leave of absence, paying a filing fee, or with lapsed status in Winter 2016 are not eligible to compete.
• Presentations must be on research. Projects, business plans and Applied Policy Projects (APP) are not eligible.
• Students are only allowed to enter the competition individually. Joint presentations with other students are not permitted.
• Students must meet the guiding principles of the Office of Intellectual Property and Industry Sponsored Research.
• Students who competed in the 2015 Grad Slam are eligible to enter the 2016 competition if they DID NOT previously win a 1st, 2nd, 3rd or Audience Choice prize.

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT: Grad Slam will strengthen your presentation skills, as well as your ability to distill down and articulate your research concisely and effectively to a non-specialist audience.

NETWORKING: Grad Slam provides an opportunity for you to directly meet and engage with valued UCLA associates (faculty, donors, alumni and elected officials).

MARKETING OPPORTUNITY: Grad Slam showcases the excellence, importance and relevance of your research!

GRAD SLAM SWAG & PRIZE MONEY!

“The ability to articulate one’s research to a broad audience is as important as the research itself. The UCLA Grad Slam was a unique opportunity that forced me to think about how to introduce my research to an audience from all disciplines. It was also an unforgettable experience that made me so excited and proud of my work and my lab.“

Yibo Zhang, Electrical Engineering, Lensfree On-Chip Microscope for Cancer Detection

“In grad school, it’s easy to get bogged down in the details and minutiae of a project. Giving a talk at Grad Slam brought the joy inherent in scientific discovery back to the surface, and was fun to boot!”

Sarah Hersman, Neuroscience Interdepartmental Program/ Psychology
Using Lasers to Illuminate Acetylcholine’s Role in Fear Memory

“Thank you for putting on this event and giving us all a great opportunity and experience! I learned a lot about presenting, and a lot about myself. It was a completely new type of experience for me so I think I’ve gained a lot.”

Oscar Antonio Campos, Molecular Biology, Distorted DNA Structure in Cancer

“I think Grad Slam is a rewarding experience. I learned new things about my dissertation topic during the process. I am very grateful that UCLA has this event and that workshops are provided so that we can do a much better job. Thank you very much!”

Aolin Wang, Epidemiology, Box: Pathways from Night Shift to Heart Dise

UCLA’s Grad Slam challenges graduate students to present a compelling presentation of their research in just 3 minutes using language appropriate for a non-specialist audience.

• Presentations must be on research. Projects, business plans and Applied Policy Projects (APP) are not eligible.
• In cases of collaborative research, the presenter’s contribution to the project must be salient and clearly specified.
• We strongly encourage Humanities and Social Sciences students to enter the competition.

Expected Participation

1. Cancellations are strongly discouraged.
2. On the day of your scheduled presentation, plan to arrive at the venue 10-15 minutes before the event start time to allow for check-in.
3. Presentations during each round will be in alphabetical order by last name.
4. You must be present for the full duration of your scheduled round.

Presentations/Slides – UPDATED GUIDELINES & LIMITATIONS

1. PowerPoint slides are allowed, but optional; no Prezi or other presentation formats.
2. Presenters will be limited to a maximum of 3 PowerPoint slides + the title slide.
3. Use the 4:3 aspect ratio slide size for your presentation.
4. No animations are allowed. This includes on-click animations that make information or images appear or disappear on a slide at your command or in a timed sequence. However, if there is an animation contained within an embedded video it may be used.
5. Embedded audio and/or video clips will be allowed (clips may contain animation).
6. All work on the slides must be original to the student and cannot be generated by a professional.
7. All presentations will be pre-loaded on the laptop on the day of the competition. You will be required to upload your PowerPoint presentations to a designated site no later than 24 hours prior to your scheduled competition. Specific upload instructions will be sent to each student presenter.
8. Props are allowed, but need to be cleared by the Grad Slam program director, require minimal set-up and not produce a mess. Please email gdevents@grad.ucla.edu if you plan to use props.
9. The room will be set-up with a laptop, projector, remote slide advancer, and laser pointer. A microphone will be provided, when necessary. There may or may not be a podium in the room, depending on the venue.

Additional Tips – NEW!

• Grad Slam is not about communicating all your research. It’s about engaging your audience in one or two aspects of your work that excite you, that could potentially have the most impact on your field of study, and/or that tell the best story to people outside of your field.
• Think about what sets your research apart from what has already been done already. What makes your work unique and valuable to the field?
• Think about commonplace references you can make to relate to your audience and draw them into your subject. Humor is often a good tool, as are rhetorical questions.
• The images you use on your slides should complement or illustrate what you are communicating verbally. Make sure they are relevant to your message.
• Do not fill your slides with a lot of data, charts, or graphs that require a lot of explanation.
• Do not fill your slides with so much content that the audience will be spending time trying to it all figure out what, rather than listening to what you are saying.
• Stay away from acronyms unless they are well-known or you can quickly explain them. Same with jargon and complex terms. You will need to briefly define them.
• Practice, practice, practice so you know all of your content by heart.
• Slow down and relax. Don’t speak too fast. Clarity and being comfortable with your content is key.
• Present in front of your roommate, friends or family members — people are are not greatly familiar with your topic/research. They are great sounding boards.
• Have fun with this! Your work is valuable and YOU are the expert. You have a lot to teach the rest of us and we’re here to listen. J

Audience

The audience may be comprised of graduate students, faculty, staff, campus leadership, alumni, donors, friends and family of the presenters, and members of the general public. We encourage all the students participating in the Grad Slam competition to invite colleagues, mentors, friends and family to your competition round.

A UCLA sanctioned photographer and/or videographer may also be present at some of the preliminary and semi-final rounds and at the final competition. As stated in the competition registration, any videotape footage, photographs, film and/or audio recordings will be used for UCLA archival and marketing purposes. No commercial use of the recordings are intended or will be authorized.

Members of the media may also be present and covering the competition.

The final competition on March 3rd will be broadcast live online.

Judging panels for the preliminary and semi-final rounds will be comprised of faculty, academic deans, administrative staff, alumni, postdoctoral scholars,donors and elected officials. The judges will be selected to ensure disciplinary diversity and every effort will be made to avoid conflicts of interest.

2016 Grad Slam Judges

Presenters will be judged on the clarity and delivery, and their ability to provide context and engage with a non-specialist audience helping others understand and appreciate their research.

Each judge will award up to 35 points based on the following criteria:

1. Clarity
2. Organization
3. Delivery
4. Visuals
5. Appropriateness
6. Intellectual Significance
7. Engagement

Judging Scorecard

Timing of each presentation will commence from the moment the student begins the presentation. The presentation begins at the moment the student engages with the audience. Thus if s/he starts with a hand clap, a gesture, an audio or video clip or any other such engagement, prior to speaking, the clock begins at that time. If there is no such alternative engagement, the clock starts when the student begins speaking.

Should the presentation go longer than 3 minutes, points will be deducted from the final score, beginning with a 1 point deduction at 3:03, and 1 point being taken off for every 2 seconds the speaker continues after that:

3:03 – 3:04 1 point
3:05 – 3:06 2 points
3:07 – 3:08 3 points
3:09 – 3:10 4 points
3:11 – 3:15 5 points
Speakers will be cut off at 3:30 (15 point deduction)

Judges will not be allowed to ask any questions of the presenters following their presentation.

First, second and third prizes will be awarded during the final competition, as well as an Audience Choice award. If the Audience Choice awardee is the same as the first, second or third place winner, both awards will go to that person.

All Participants

1.  Grad Slam tumbler, cinch bag and pen

All Finalists

1. Grad Slam Finalist certificate
2. $50 gift card to UCLA Store

1st Prize

1. $3,000 stipend
2. Dinner with Vice Provost & Dean Robin Garrell and other VIP leadership in April or May 2016
3. Paid, round-trip travel expenses to compete in the UC-wide Grad Slam competition on April 22, 2016 in San Francisco, California

2nd Prize

1. $2,000 stipend
2. Dinner with Vice Provost & Dean Robin Garrell and other VIP leadership in April/May 2016

3rd Prize

1. $1,000 stipend
2. Dinner with Vice Provost & Dean Robin Garrell and other VIP leadership in April/May 2016

Audience Choice Award

1. $500 stipend
2. Dinner with Vice Provost & Dean Robin Garrell and other VIP leadership in April/May 2016

Students must be registered and enrolled during Winter Quarter 2016 in order to participate in the Grad Slam and to be eligible to receive any prize.

The prize money is a stipend and is considered income. It will be taxed and a student’s financial aid eligibility may be adjusted, as a result.

Final Competition

Congratulations to our 2016 Grad Slam winners!

Thursday, March 3

FIRST PLACE

Gary Li, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering – Traveling to Mars with Immortal Plasma Rockets

SECOND PLACE

Philip Bulterys, Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics – Disarming Deadly Bacteria

THIRD PLACE & AUDIENCE CHOICE

Courtney Young, Molecular Biology – An end to Duchenne: gene editing for muscular dystrophy

 

Semi-Final Rounds

Congratulations to the winners from the 2 semi-final rounds! You’re going to the UCLA finals on March 3rd!

Tuesday, March 1, 2016

Semi-Final 1:

Mayank Jog, Bioengineering – Imaging Electric Currents

Samantha Mikaiel, Radiological Sciences – Innovative Real-Time Imaging for MRI-Guided Interventions

Alexander Thiele, Mechanical Engineering – Phase Change Materials for Energy-Efficient Buildings

Victoria Tseng, Epidemiology – Cataract Surgery and Mortality in the United States Population

Courtney Young, Molecular Biology – An end to Duchenne: gene editing for muscular dystrophy

Semi-Final 2:

Philip Bulterys, Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics – Disarming Deadly Bacteria

Gary Li, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering – Traveling to Mars with Immortal Plasma Rockets

Hsien-Liang Tseng, Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences – Is Black Carbon a Culprit of the Severe Drought in the Western United States?

Nerve Macaspac, Geography – Insurgent Peace: Local Peacebuilding Among Indigenous Peoples in the Cordillera Region, Philippines

Erica Onugha, English – When Forced Labor Leaves No Time to Parent

Preliminary Rounds

Congratulations to the winners from the 4 preliminary rounds! Now you advance to the Semi-Finals on March 1st!

Tuesday, February 23, 2016

Round 1:

Calvin Brown, Electrical Engineering – Learning to Beat Disease

Laura Haney, Astronomy – How a Freak Accident in Space Saved the Earth

Alexandra Polasko, Civil and Environmental Engineering – Discovering New Talent In Microbes!

Victoria Tseng, Epidemiology – Cataract Surgery and Mortality in the United States Population

Round 2:

Jia Feng, History – The Emperor’s Coffer: The Qing Imperial Fiscal Separation Between Privy Purse and State Treasury (1644-1912)

Calvin Ho, Sociology – Rolling out the red carpet for the best and the brightest

Mayank Jog, Bioengineering – Imaging Electric Currents

Cynthia Kusters, Epidemiology – Genetic Variants Among Parkinson’s Patients and its Potential Impact on Personalized Treatment Plans

Nerve Macaspac, Geography – Insurgent Peace: Local Peacebuilding Among Indigenous Peoples in the Cordillera Region, Philippines

Erica Onugha, English – When Forced Labor Leaves No Time to Parent

Alexander Thiele, Engineering – Phase Change Materials for Energy-Efficient Buildings

Wednesday, February 24, 2016

Round 3:

Philip Bulterys, Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics – Disarming Deadly Bacteria

Olivia Ellis, Environmental Health Science – How Clean Are Operating Rooms?

Tyler Watson, Environmental Health Sciences – Farm in the City: Improving Nutrition and Health Through Local Food in Los Angeles

Courtney Young, Molecular Biology – An end to Duchenne: gene editing for muscular dystrophy

Round 4:

Patrick Bourke, Higher Education and Organizational Change –  Campus Pride: The College Selection Process for LGBQ Students

Krystle Cobian, Graduate School of Education & Information Studies – The Science of Developing More Scientists

Kyleigh DePetro, Integrative Biology and Physiology – How Walk Again After Spinal Cord Injury

Kaitlyn Hood, Mathematics – Using Math to Build Design Better Blood Tests

Gary Li, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering – Traveling to Mars with Immortal Plasma Rockets

Samantha Mikaiel, Radiological Sciences – Innovative Real-Time Imaging for MRI-Guided Interventions

Qiming Shao, Electrical Engineering – Magnetic Skyrmions: Building a Better Computer Chip

Yang Shen, Mechanical Engineering – Virtual Reality-Based Bilateral Movement Training in Upper Extremity Post-Stroke Rehabilitation

Hsien-Liang Tseng, Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences – Is Black Carbon a Culprit of the Severe Drought in the Western United States?

Interested in competing in the 2016 UCLA Grad Slam?  Register here.

The Grad Slam registration deadline has been EXTENDED to Friday, January 29, 2016, 11:59 pm PST.

Late entries beyond this date will be considered on a space available basis.

Still not sure if you want to sign-up?  Attend one of our Information Sessions. RSVP by clicking on the selected date and time below.

Thursday, January 14: 10:30 am – 11:30 am, 1215 Murphy Hall
Wednesday, January 20: 5:30 pm – 6:30 pm, Student Activities Center Conference Room 4

The Graduate Division is very pleased to provide preparation workshops for Grad Slam entrants.

Grad Slam Public Speaking Workshops

Storytelling Your Research (co-hosted by UCLA Career Center)
Thursday, January 28: 9:30 am – 12 pm (includes a light breakfast)

         RSVP

Everyone loves a good story. That’s why stories are so effective for engaging an audience, whether it be within your discipline or for a broad audience. However, translating complex research, data, goals, and ideas into good stories can be daunting. This interactive workshop is open to all UCLA graduate students and will cover:

1. Why “storytelling” matters and is a powerful tool to utilize as a graduate student or postdoc
2. How to tell an effective “story”
3. Translating these methods to your research and goals

Speaker: Celia Hoffman, Associate Director, The Goodman Center

Celia specializes in the intersection between storytelling and visual communication. She began her career in marketing and graphic design, creating visual tools for brands to teach, sell, and engage. At The Goodman Center, Celia teaches and co-teaches workshops and webinars on storytelling, presentation design and strategic communications.

Basic Presentation Skills
Thursday, February 4: 2 pm- 4 pm –  RSVP

Friday, February 12: 10 am – 12 pm –  RSVP

This workshop will help you articulate your information and content in a manner that is well received by a “non-specialist” audience increasing retention. By the conclusion of the workshop you will improve your understanding of how adults prefer to take-in, process, and synthesize new knowledge allowing your presentation to resonate with a disparate audience. You will learn your own primary, secondary, and tertiary preferences for taking-in new information, thereby mitigating subjectivity in your delivery, ensuring your presentation is relevant to an audience outside your career field.  These workshops are open to all UCLA graduate students.

Speaker: Reginald (Reg) Randles, Lead Training Specialist, UCLA Health Human Resources CORE

Reg designs, develops and facilitates training. He is a Myers-Briggs Personality Type Indicator (MBTI®) Certified Practitioner and a qualified D.i.S.C. Classic® facilitator. A published author, Reg holds a Master of Arts degree in Organizational Leadership from Chapman University, an Executive Certificate in Public and Non-Profit Leadership from Chapman University, and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Professional Communication from California State University, Los Angeles.

       Grad Slam Small Group Coaching Sessions

Participating students must come prepared with a draft of their presentations. These small group sessions will give students the opportunity to present before the group and receive feedback both from the coach and Grad Slam peers who will also be in attendance. These sessions are invitation-only to Grad Slam participants.

Tuesday, February 16: 10 am – 12 pm
Charles E. Young Research Library, Room 23167 – West Electronic Classroom
Coach: Megan Eigenbrod

Wednesday, February 17: 10 am – 12 pm
Charles E. Young Research Library, Room 23167 – West Electronic Classroom
Coach: Liz Galvin Lew

Friday, February 19: 10 am – 12 pm
Charles E. Young Research Library, Room 23167 – West Electronic Classroom
Coach: Stewart Moses

Friday, February 19: 2 pm – 4 pm
Charles E. Young Research Library, Room 23167 – West Electronic Classroom
Coach: Megan Eigenbrod

Megan Eigenbrod, MS, Training and Career Development Coordinator, UCLA Campus Human Resources

Megan Eigenbrod is the Training and Career Development Coordinator for UCLA Campus Human Resources. Megan fosters the professional development of UCLA administrative staff by providing training in leadership development, communication skills, and presentation design and delivery. Megan received her Master’s in Counseling and a Graduate Certificate in Career Counseling from California State University Northridge. She has presented at several conferences including the Strengths in Educational Leadership Conference hosted by the Gallup Organization.

Stewart L. Moses, Former Director of Space Science and Exploration at Northrup Grumman Corporation, BS ’79 MS ’81 Ph.D. ’86

Dr. Moses earned his PhD at UCLA in Physics in 1986, specializing in the area of space plasma physics. He is the retired Director of Space Science and Exploration at Northrop Grumman Corporation and has worked as a research space scientist, systems engineer, and program manager. Dr. Moses has been involved with such programs as Voyager, the James Webb Space Telescope, and the lunar probe LCROSS. He has made numerous presentations at scientific conferences, NASA events, and other venues, and has years of experience coaching and mentoring junior technical staff.

Liz Galvin Lew, Lecturer/ESLPE Coordinator, UCLA Writing Programs

Liz Galvin is a lecturer in Writing Programs, where she teaches English as a Second Language and composition. In this capacity, she coaches international graduate students from all over campus on giving clear, engaging presentations of their research. She also works with native speakers on presentation skills in her writing for business and social policy class. Liz received her Ph. D. from UCLA’s Graduate School of Education and Information Studies.

Online Resources

How to Talk like TED by Carmine Gallo, Article by Guy Kawasaki

Giving an Academic Talk by Jonathan Shewchuk, Associate Professor in Computer Science, University of California at Berkeley

Giving Oral Presentations from English Communication for Scientists by Jean-luc Doumont (ed.), Nature (2010)

Presentation Zen by Garr Reynolds

10 tips on how to make slides that communicate your idea, from TED’s in-house expert by Aaron Weyenberg

Top Ten Tips for Writing and Delivering Very Brief Speeches by Bill Cole, Founder and CEO of William B. Cole Consultants

Need some inspiration to see how it’s done?

Presentations from the 2015 UCLA and UC Grad Slam competitions

TED Talks (up to 6 minutes in length): Brief talks on “ideas worth spreading.”

PhD Comics Two-Minute Thesis: PhD Comics challenged graduate students to explain their work in two minutes – the best have been turned into videos!

3 Minute Thesis Competition Winners: Winning presentations from a multi-university thesis competition in Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, and the South Pacific.

Recommended Reading

Storytelling

Narrative Impact: Social and Cognitive Foundations, Edited by Melanie C. Green, et al. (Lawrence Erlbaum Associates © 2002)

The Story Factor, by Annette Simmons (Perseus Publishing © 2001)

Tell Me a Story: Narrative and Intelligence, by Roger Schank (Northwestern University Press © 1990)

Wired for Story, by Lisa Cron (Ten Speed Press © 2012)

Language & Culture

Metaphors We Live By, by George Lakoff and Mark Johnson (University of Chicago Press © 1980)

The Way We Talk Now, by Geoffrey Nunberg (Houghton Mifflin Company © 2001)

In Other Words: A Plea for Plain Speaking in Foundations, by Tony Proscio (Edna McConnel Clark Foundation © 2000)

When Words Fail, by Tony Proscio (Edna McConnel Clark Foundation © 2005)

Compassion Fatigue, by Susan Moeller (Routledge © 1999)

Tales of a New America, by Robert Reich (Times Books © 1987)

Writing

The Sense of Style: The Thinking Persons Guide to Writing in the 21^st Century, By Steven Pinker (Penguin Books © 2015)

On Writing Well: The Classic Guide to Writing Nonfiction, by William Zinsser (30 Anv. Rep Ed. © 2006)

Telling True Stories, Edited by Mark Kramer and Wendy Call (Plume © 2007)

Storycraft: The Complete Guide to Writing Narrative Non-Fiction, by Jack Hart (University of Chicago Press © 2012)

2016 Final Competition Presentations – Videos

Vice Provost and Dean Robin Garrell – Welcome and Introduction, 2016 Grad Slam Final Competition

Philip Bulterys, Microbiology, Immunology, and Molecular Genetics – Disarming Deadly Bacteria

Mayank Jog, Bioengineering – Imaging Electric Currents

Gary Li, Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering – Traveling to Mars with Immortal Plasma Rockets

Nerve Macaspac, Geography – Insurgent Peace: Local Peacebuilding Among Indigenous Peoples in the Cordillera Region, Philippines

Samantha Mikaiel, Radiological Sciences – Innovative Real-Time Imaging for MRI-Guided Interventions

Erica Onugha, English – When Forced Labor Leaves No Time to Parent

Alexander Thiele, Mechanical Engineering – Phase Change Materials for Energy-Efficient Buildings

Hsien-Liang (Rose) Tseng, Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences – Is Black Carbon a Culprit of the Severe Drought in the Western United States?

Victoria Tseng, Epidemiology  – Cataract Surgery and Mortality in the United States Population

Courtney Young, Molecular Biology – An end to Duchenne: gene editing for muscular dystrophy

 

View photos and presentations from the 2016 competition.

 

The three-minute pitch: Grad students compete to make their research accessible  – Office of the President NewsroomUCLA grad students learn the art of plain-speaking – UCLA Newsroom

Students put expertise into plain English – Los Angeles Times

UCLA’s Grad Slam competition asks grad students to show their TED style – UCLA Newsroom

Eliminating jargon key to uniting students of different majors – Daily Bruin

Grad Slam competition teaches students to TEDify their research – UCLA Newsroom

UCLA participates in UC’s inaugural Grad Slam research competition – Daily Bruin

UCLA engineering grad student attempts to talk his way to the top – UCLA Newsroom

Why more scientists are needed in the public square – The Conversation

The Graduate Division , Graduate Students Association and Office of the Chancellor are grateful to include the participation and outreach assistance of our campus partners!

• Office of the Executive Vice Chancellor/Provost
• Graduate Student Resource Center
• Career Center
• Academic Deans
• UCLA Development
• UCLA Foundation
• Women & Philanthropy at UCLA
• Gold Shield
• Faculty Women’s Club
• Office of Residential Life – Graduate and Family Housing
• Office of Media Relations
• Alumni Affairs
• Government &Community Relations
• Dashew Center
• Graduate and Family Housing
• Residential Life
• Charles E. Young Research Library
• Chemistry & Biochemistry
• Architecture and Urban Design

gdevents@grad.ucla.edu – please include “Grad Slam” in the subject line

310.206.6086