The Office of Graduate Education and Life has announced the winners of the annual Three-Minute Thesis Competition, which was held on April 10 during Graduate Student Appreciation Week and Research Week.
Serhii Bahdasariants, a pathophysiology, rehabilitation and performance doctoral candidate in the School of Medicine, earned first place for his presentation on “Restoring Movement After Paralysis.”
Winning the competition was both “surreal and rewarding” for Bahdasariants, who credited persistent practice and feedback from faculty to his success. He impressed the judges with his delivery on how decoding signals from unaffected muscles may help activate paralyzed muscles in the millions of individuals struggling with partial paralysis. When asked why he entered the competition, Bahdasariants said he was excited to compete with other talented students and gain skills that will help him pitch his research to broader audiences and future investors.
Trevor Smith, a mechanical engineering doctoral candidate in the Benjamin M. Statler College of Engineering and Mineral Resources, earned second place for his presentation on “Swarm of One: Self-Organized Robots.”
To address declining honeybee populations, he is designing a robotic pollinator specifically for greenhouse environments, where conditions are difficult for bees. Delivering his research in a shortened format posed both a challenge and reward for Smith, who said he believes in the value of selecting a few impactful points that help guide the audience to an understanding of a complex topic.
Thatcher Stevens, a chemical engineering doctoral candidate in the Statler College, received third place for his presentation on “Fireproofing for the Future: Safer Rail Cars with Advanced Composites.”
Stevens said working with competition coach and Program Director for Graduate Student Success Betty Mei helped refine his public speaking skills ahead of the competition. He shared his research on fire-resistant materials that are cost-effective, lightweight and as strong as traditional construction materials with the judges and audience members.
Siti Suwanda, a marketing doctoral candidate from the John Chambers College of Business and Economics, was selected by audience members for the People’s Choice Award for her presentation on “When Preventing Deaths is Stigmatized: The Case of Narcan (Naloxone HCI).”
Since her first year at WVU, Suwanda said she was inspired by the finalists in the Three-Minute Thesis Competition. When the opportunity to share her research arrived, her engaging delivery of intervention methods that can reduce the stigma around Narcan usage earned her People’s Choice.
This year’s judges included Ashley Cranney, assistant professor of sport, exercise, and performance psychology in the College of Applied Human Sciences; Amy Fiske, professor of psychology in the Eberly College of Arts and Sciences; Thanh Le, director of Student Engagement and Leadership; Micaela Morrissette, Strategic Communications and Marketing research writer; and Annalisa Huckaby, Ruby Distinguished Doctoral Fellow in Immunology and Microbial Pathogenesis in the School of Medicine.
Bahdasariants will move on to compete in the regional competition next spring.
Read more about all ten grand finale finalists and learn more about the WVU 3MT Competition.
The internationally renowned 3MT competition, originally founded by the University of Queensland in Australia, challenges doctoral students to present their research topic and its significance in three minutes using a single PowerPoint slide.
Competitors develop academic, presentation and research communication skills while gaining experience pitching their research succinctly to a non-specialist audience.