Scientific posters are visual representations of scientific research that are typically presented at conferences. Think of scientific posters as abstracts in picture form. They should be concise while providing a great deal of information.
This form of scientific presentation was developed due to overcrowded national and international conference programs. According to Barbara Gastel and Robert A. Day in their book How to Write a Scientific Paper (2016), scientific poster representations developed in the US between the late 1960s and the mid-1970s.
Large annual meetings, such as those held by the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology, had a problem with meeting rooms that were not large or numerous enough to accommodate the large volume of conference applicants. They came up with the idea of poster presentations for applicants who did not qualify for the oral presentations at these conferences.
In this way, conference organizers could take the sting out of rejections At first, these scientific posters were displayed in the hallways of the meeting hotels or conference buildings. However, young researchers were happy for the chance to present their work at these “important” events.
Scientific posters soon grew to become a respectable and accepted part of many conference presentations. In this article, I explain how to prepare a scientific poster and provide some examples and resources to help.
What is a scientific poster?
A scientific poster is an illustrated summary of research that research scientists use to display their scientific work to an audience. On average, a poster is 36 inches tall and 48 inches wide.
As mentioned earlier, a scientific poster is like a visual abstract. It has to be concise. This means fitting in as much information as possible without making your poster look cluttered.
Think of a scientific poster as a work of art. How do you balance a visually appealing presentation with a presentation that properly and accurately represents your research? This is the question that you should be solving in your mind when creating your scientific poster.
How to prepare a scientific poster
To prepare a scientific poster, you should follow these steps: 1. Learn the requirements of the conference; 2. Follow the IMRad format; and 3. Focus on balancing visual appeal with concise information.
Let’s take a look at each point in detail.
1. Learn the requirements of the conference. Posters on average are 36 inches tall and 48 inches wide. However, you should pay careful attention to the requirements of the conference. They may have variations from this standard or may have additional requirements.
2. Follow the IMRaD format. The IMRaD format stands for Introduction, Methods, Results, and Discussion. They should be included in a concise form on the poster. A poster should be between 500 and 1000 words. In the template provided below, teh abstract is included.
However, there is a school of thought that says that the abstract should be left out. After all, the poster is a kind of visual abstract. If the abstract is a condensation of a paper, a poster is a visual version of the same. Therefore including the abstract is pointless repetition. If you struggle with limited space in your poster, think of leaving out the abstract.
3. Focus on balancing visual appeal with concision. This is likely the most important aspect of a scientific poster. There are a number of tips to follow to ensure that your poster is visually appealing. Let’s take a look at them.
Use three to five vertical columns if the poster is in landscape format
Use two to three columns for posters in portrait format
Focus on clear presentation
Avoid clutter
Make use of highlights
It cannot be overemphasized how important it is to avoid cluttering your poster. The point of a poster is clear and compelling visualization. This means not stuffing your poster with too much information. You have to make hard and intelligent choices on what information to highlight and what information to leave out.
Example of a scientific poster
Here are examples of scientific posters from Press Books.
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Assistance in transforming your thesis into a published scientific paper
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Cite this EminentEdit article |
Antoine, M. (2024, November 21). How to Make a Scientific Poster. https://www.eminentediting.com/post/how-to-make-a-scientific-poster |
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