2025–26 Three Minute Thesis competition application now open
Interested doctoral students must register by Oct. 8 to participate in this signature event
The application for the Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition i for interesteddoctoral students.
3MT is an academic competition that challenges students to summarize their thesis in three minutes for a general audience and a panel of judges, who rate their performance. The first-place winner receives $1,500 and a chance to represent the university at the regional, national and international competitions. The second-place recipient, as well as the people’s choice, also receive prize money.
To participate, you must be a 鶹ѰBoulder doctoral student admitted to candidacy by December 1, 2025, and be enrolled for spring 2026 and expect to graduate in May 2026 or later. Graduates or alumni are not eligible. The deadline for registering is Wednesday, Oct. 8 at 11:59 p.m.
Application closes Oct. 8
“Amazing research happens every day by graduate students, but it often flies under the radar. The Three Minute Thesis competition is an opportunity to showcase that creative and innovative work and the talented students that make it happen,” Scott Adler, the dean of the Graduate School, said previously.
The 3MT event began in 2008 when the state of Queensland, Australia, suffered from a severe drought. To conserve water, residents were encouraged to time their showers, and many people had a three-minute egg timer fixed to the wall in their bathroom. The then-dean of the University of Queensland Graduate School, Emeritus Professor Alan Lawson, decided to apply the same approach with his students in a first of its kind competition.
It has since spread across the globe, including to 鶹ѰBoulder. Since 2011 the popularity of the competition has increased and 3MT competitions are now held in over 900 universities across more than 85 countries worldwide.
Prior to 鶹ѰBoulder’s competition, which takes place every spring and is one of the Graduate School’s signature events, students participate in a series of workshops to improve their presentation and research communication skills, helping them to effectively (and succinctly) explain the significance of their research. These workshops also provide a chance for students to forge connections within a like-minded cohort from across the disciplines.
One such workshop or presentation scheduled for this year, among others discussing things like storytelling framework and improvisation techniques, is a by international 3MT winner and Marvin H. Caruthers Endowed Chair for Early-Career Faculty Assistant Professor Samuel Ramsey. You can watch Dr. Sammy’s .
The Graduate School is hosting a virtual on Sept. 29 from 12-1 p.m. which will walk through the 3MT timeline, workshops, preliminary competition, and final competition details. For more information, including seeing the past winners, refer to the 3MT website. For all other questions, contact Hailey Herman at hailey.herman@colorado.edu.