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"Meeting of the Minds" Student Research Symposium

The 13th annual "Meeting of the Minds" Student Research Symposium will be held on April 11th, 2024, from 10:30 am - 5:30 pm in the SMSU North Conference Center. 

  • All students from all disciplines are welcome to participate.
    • Undergraduate or graduate students currently enrolled at CSUSB and alumni/alumnae who received their degrees in Spring, Summer, and Fall 2023 are eligible. Works that are either preliminary, ongoing, or completed are accepted.
  • Students may elect to present a poster presentation or oral presentation. 
    • Poster presentations will be held in person from 10:30 am - 11:30 am and 1:30 pm - 2:30 pm in SMSU North.
    • Oral presentations will be held in person from 2:00 pm - 5:30 pm in the CGI building.
    • Those who wish to have an art display or performance are encouraged to contact Danielle White (dnwhite@csusb.edu). 
  • All entries must provide an abstract of at least 200 words and a maximum of 250 for the event's program. Your faculty mentor should review abstracts.
    • The abstract contains a hypothesis or problem statement, methods, results or outcomes, and a conclusion.
  • Duplicate entries will be returned—one application per student, per team. 
    • Group presentations are defined as two or more presenters. During the group presentation, all members are expected to present.

Information for Participants

Oral Presenters

View Oral Presentation Schedule

Presentation & Schedule

Oral presentations will occur in person only on Thursday, April 11th, in the Center for Global Innovation building (CGI). The sessions will be broken down into the following times: 

Session 1 - 2:00 pm - 3:30 pm

Session 2 - 4:00 pm - 5:30 pm

  1. You will be assigned to a session based on the theme of your project. Due to the number of presenters, we cannot accept time requests or changes.
  2. Each presenter will have 10 minutes to present their research via PowerPoint presentation, followed by 5 minutes of Q&A.  
  3. Once the schedule is finalized, you will receive a notification to view your assigned sessions, time, and location.
  4. A workshop on “How to Present an Oral Presentation at a Conference” will be conducted on March 28 at 12 pm. Kindly register for this workshop by clicking the provided link. Register Here: https://www.csusb.edu/event/577486   
  5. An information session will be held on March 29th from 10-11 am via Zoom. We will discuss event logistics, registration, and answer any questions you may have. Please register here: https://csusb.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZIvcOqrrTsrE925DJlumnUfPYL3YCHRD6eo 
  6. The last day to request changes to your presentation title, co-presenters, mentors, etc. is March 15th.

What to Expect

Registration will begin at 12:00 p.m. in the CGI building. Please download your Event Pass from Coyote Connection to expedite the check-in process.

  1. The panel of judges will consist of faculty, graduate students, and community leaders from various disciplines. They will have access to your abstract for background information.  
  2. All rooms will be equipped with a computer and projector. If you require a clicker, it is your responsibility to bring one.
  3. PowerPoint presentations should be uploaded on either a thumb drive or an online drive for easy access. Judges will be informed to allow time for set-up.
  4. Please arrive on time for your presentation. It’s advised that you arrive early; however, please do not interrupt ongoing presentations.  
  5. The event is open to the campus, so you are welcome to invite family, friends, or faculty to your session.  
  6. Dress attire should be business casual.  
  7. Photos may be taken during your session.

Awards & Recognition

Your presentation will be judged based on the following criteria:  

  • Coverage of the Topic  
  • Organization  
  • Clarity and Purpose  
  • Appropriateness of Methodology  
  • Interpretation of Results  
  • Ability to Handle Questions  
  • Value of Research or Creative Activity  

There will be one awardee per session. Each will be presented with an award and recognized during the OSR Recognition Reception on April 18th at 4 pm. A special invitation will be shared with those selected as winners.

Withdrawals

If, for any reason, you decide that you are no longer able to participate, please email osr@csusb.edu. 

Next Steps

  1. Share this information with your faculty mentor and co-presenters.
  2. Await your assigned session details from the OSR.
  3. Prepare your oral PowerPoint presentation.
  4. Attend the "How to Present an Oral Presentation at a Conference" workshop on March 28th.
  5. Attend the Information Session on March 29th. 

Poster Presenters

View Poster Number & Session Assignment

Poster Presentation 

Poster presentations will occur in two sessions on April 11th from 10:30 am – 11:45 and 1:30 pm - 2:45 pm in Santos Manuel Student Union North Conference Center. On the event day, you must arrive at least 30 minutes prior to your assigned time to set up your poster. You are asked to remain by your poster and answer attendee/juror questions during this time. Posters MUST  be taken down at the end of your session.

What to Expect

  1. Registration will begin at 9:00 a.m. in the SMSU North Conference Center. Please download your Event Pass from Coyote Connection to expedite the check-in process. 
  2. When you arrive, you will need to set up your poster if you have not done so already.
  3. The Meeting of the Minds Opening Ceremony will begin promptly at 10:30 am. You are asked to be seated for the viewing of the ceremony.
  4. At the conclusion of the opening ceremony, you will return to your poster and stand by it for the duration of the event.
  5. If you have selected to participate in the competition portion, a faculty, graduate student, or community leader will visit your poster for evaluation.
  6. Dress attire should be business casual.  
  7. Photos may be taken during your session.

Poster Printing

 The OSR will provide one free printing for all poster presenters/teams. However, posters must be submitted by April 1st by 11:59 pm. Posters will be collected by the department and taken to the SMSU Conference Center on the event day. If you wish to collect your poster before then, you can do so on Tuesday, April 9th in CE 355 from 8 am - 3 pm.  

  • If you choose to submit your poster for free printing, note the following Printing Services guidelines:   
  • All files must be saved in PDF format and titled “MOTM _Poster#_FirstName_LastName.” (Ex. MOTM_22_Shirley_Knotts)
  • Poster numbers will be provided to you in a separate email. 
  • Printing Services is not capable of printing a document at a larger size. The original document must be created at the intended print size.  
  • Posters should be sized at 48 width x 36 height.   
  • The poster must be designed using PowerPoint, Adobe Illustrator, Adobe InDesign, or Inkscape.  
  • Please do not use Word, Publisher, Pages, etc., to create your poster.  
  • You are allowed only one print job.  

Please use one of the following templates found here if needed: https://www.csusb.edu/advancement/strategic-communication/downloadable-resources/academic-posters  

Note if your poster includes the CSUSB’s logo, it must be approved by strategic communications before submission.  

Submit Poster for Printing

ForagerOne Symposium Upload

Please upload your poster to ForagerOne’s Symposium no later than April 9th. This virtual option will allow attendees who cannot be there in person to view your poster online and serves as a repository of all poster presentations.  You will have the option to include a pre-recorded video or voiceover with your presentation.  This does not excuse you from the in-person event on April 11th. 

Regarding Symposium upload:  

  • The file must be under 10 MB in size. If needed, you may use an online tool such as Smallpdf to compress your file.  
  • We recommend a minimum image resolution of 1500px (or 5in) in the smallest dimension (i.e., width/height) to ensure it is visible when viewers zoom in on it.  
  • The poster must be converted into a PDF document before being uploaded. Symposium does not support any other file types.  
  • Once your poster has been uploaded, no revisions will be accepted, so please make sure to have your mentor review it before submitting it.  
  • Please use the form below to upload your poster to Symposium. You will be required to register with your campus email.   

Upload Poster to Symposium

Please note: The OSR is not responsible for editing your abstract or making alterations to your poster once it has been submitted.  

Competition 

If you have selected to participate in the competition portion of the symposium, the judges will evaluate your poster based on the following criteria:  

  • Research Project/Objective  
  • Poster Content  
  • Flow and Organization  
  • Significance of Research  

There will be two winners per college, one graduate and one undergraduate. The winners of the Best Poster Presentations will be announced on Friday, April 12th. They will be invited to the OSR Recognition Reception on April 18th at 4 p.m. This event is invite-only.

Withdrawals

If, for any reason, you decide that you are no longer able to participate, please email osr@csusb.edu. 

Next Steps

  1. Attend the “How to Present a Poster Presentation” workshop on March 21st at 12 pm. Register HERE.
  2. An information session will be held on March 29th from 10-11 am via Zoom. We will discuss event logistics, registration, and answer any questions you may have. Please register here
  3. Finalize your poster and have a faculty mentor review and approve it.  
  4. Wait to receive communications regarding your assigned poster session and poster number. 
  5. Submit the poster for free printing by April 1st,  if needed.
  6. Upload poster to Symposium by April 9th.  
  7. Pick-Up poster on April 9th in CE 355.

Poster Templates Provided by the Office of Strategic Communications:

For more information, please contact our office at (909) 537-3728.