Information for Students

Your “Showcase Advisor” may be a graduate mentor or faculty member from an undergraduate capstone, honors course, independent study, or other extended research project or creative effort. For example:

• A chemistry student who has been working on a project under the supervision of a faculty member would ask that faculty member to serve as their Showcase Advisor.
• A history student who wants to present a capstone research paper would ask the faculty member who taught (or is teaching) that capstone class to serve as their Showcase Advisor.
• An MS or PhD student in atmospheric sciences who wants to present research conducted under the guidance of a faculty member would ask that faculty member to serve as their Showcase Advisor.

Showcase Advisors can, but don’t have to, be your departmental academic advisor. Showcase Advisors must know your work and be prepared to approve it for presentation.

Students must work closely with their Showcase Advisor to ensure their title and abstract is well-prepared before it is submitted.

You must share your poster, presentation, panel or performance's title and abstract with your Showcase Advisor and work closely with them to make sure it is complete.

Once your Showcase Advisor has approved your title and abstract, you’ll use the Abstract Submission Portal to provide:

• Basic information about all presenters and your Showcase Advisor
• A title and abstract of your project
• The name of the school(s), college(s) and academic department(s) involved in the research/work being presented
• Other information about your research/work

The Showcase Abstract Submission Portal is now open. You must submit an abstract by noon Monday, March 10, 2025, to present at Showcase.

All abstracts will be included in the digital Showcase Day program.

What is an abstract?  

An abstract is a 100-to-250-word paragraph that provides a concise summary of your project or presentation.

The two most common abstract types are descriptive abstracts and informative abstracts:  

• A descriptive abstract is used for humanities and social sciences. It describes the major points of the project, including the background and focus. It does not include methods, results or conclusions.
• An informative abstract is used for science and engineering. It includes the essential points of the project, summarizing the background, purpose, focus, methods, results and findings/conclusions.  

Need help with your abstract?  

• Work with your Showcase Advisor.
• Make an appointment with the Writing Center.  
• The Minerva Center for High Impact Learning has tips for writing an abstract. 

Students must submit their posters or online presentations, if applicable, by 11:59 p.m. Tuesday, April 15, 2025.

• Posters: Only students presenting posters may submit posters for free printing. Students who submit posters after the submission deadline will have to pay for printing.
• Online Presentations: Only students enrolled in an online program may present online (via poster or pre-recorded video).

Eligible students will receive access to the correct submission portal via email after submitting their abstract.

You must share your poster or video with your Showcase Advisor and work closely with them to make sure it is complete before submitting the file. 

Poster Requirements

• All students must use one of the sample Showcase poster templates to create their posters. (To download the templates, open the link and select “File,” then “Save As” and then “Download a Copy.”)
• Posters should be 48 inches wide by 36 inches tall.
• Posters must list all student presenters' names and their Showcase Advisor's name.
• Posters must be submitted as PDFs.

The Minerva Center for High Impact Learning has tips for creating research posters.

Video Requirements

• Videos must be submitted as MPGs or ZIP files. 

When: Noon to 1 p.m. Friday, March 7, 2025

Where: Zoom. Register for the March 7 event on Handshake.

Sharing your experiences, whether completed or ongoing, is a crucial part of learning and professional development. Find out how to create a poster presentation to discuss your research, internship, or other experiences

Registration required. Sign into Zoom using your UAlbany email. 

When: 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. Tuesday, March 25, 2025

Where: Zoom. Register for the March 25 event on Handshake.

Sharing your experiences, whether completed or ongoing, is a crucial part of learning and professional development. Find out how to create a poster presentation to discuss your research, internship, or other experiences

Registration required. Sign into Zoom using your UAlbany email. 

When: 2 to 5 p.m. Wednesday, April 16, 2025

Where: Taconic 302, Uptown Campus

Drop in any time during this three-hour session to practice your Showcase poster presentation and receive feedback.  

You should bring your printed poster or a computer with access to your poster. Remember, poster presentations should be brief; five minutes is a good target! 

When:

• 9 to 10 a.m. Tuesday, March 25, 2025
• 4 to 5 p.m. Monday, April 7, 2025
• 9 to 10 a.m. Monday, April 21, 2025

Where: Taconic 345, Uptown Campus

Drop in at any time during the hour to chat with Minerva Center staff and peers about getting started or any other topics/questions regarding research, internships or other experiential education opportunities.  

You can also drop in to practice presentations or receive feedback on artifacts that share your work (e.g., abstracts, posters).

“When I think back to my experience, I get an overwhelming sense of pride. It was a day where I was finally able to share the things that I typically geek out about in private with peers and professionals who had a genuine interest in my research, while overcoming my own personal fears associated with public speaking.”

“Go just to go! It's good for inspiration.”

“Volunteering at Showcase was a good opportunity to connect with the campus community and be involved.”

“I enjoyed the student presentations in general, they were highly informative and well made, and I sincerely enjoyed talking to my peers about their projects.”

My favorite part of Showcase was...  

• “Being able to work on my communication skills and working on research.”
• “Seeing people so confident in what they were presenting.”
• “Being surrounded by like-minded students who want to share their work.”
• “Having people come to watch me present at my panel.”
• “Walking around the Lecture Center and seeing all the cool research and projects that my peers have been working on.”  
• “Getting to present my research and see what my classmates have been working on all semester.”
• “Being able to collaborate and learn from my peers.”
• “Asking people hard questions about the topic of their posters.”
• “Meeting a bunch of new people.”
• “Seeing my friend and supporters show up to hear me read my essay.”
• “Networking with people within my discipline.”

"Witnessing the depth of creativity and dedication among participants, I truly enjoyed the event. The collaborative atmosphere and thought-provoking discussions would be one of the most valuable things you can expect."  

“By volunteering, I served my colleagues while learning how to organize events. As a teacher and a leader, I like to learn different things that keep me updated and widen my abilities in working with different people.”

“I enjoyed seeing all the research projects different labs and departments have going on!”

“It is great to see key figures from the University and the community attend and view student work. It's great exposure for students and experience in speaking out their work.”

My favorite part of Showcase was...

• “Seeing all of the hard work my peers have put into their projects.”
• “Meeting new people.”
• “Having all the posters of our research group next to each other. We communicated, celebrated and presented almost collectively. It was a great day for team building.”
• “Getting feedback from professors and colleagues about my research topic.”
• “The questions asked about my research.”
• “Seeing all the great work my peers did on their research posters. I was proud of them.”
• “When the high school students came to know about the projects.”
• “Talking to participants and taking feedback about my project work and future research potential.”
• “Getting to present to such a range of guests, from the New York State Health Commissioner to high school students.”
• “Presenting and networking with faculty in my department.”