Contact us
- Graduate Research Academy
- Level 2, 16 Wally's Walk
- Macquarie University NSW 2109
- T: +61 (2) 9850 4741
- E: gr.experience@mq.edu.au
Visualise your Thesis™! An international programme for graduate researchers
Visualise Your Thesis™ (VYT) is an international programme that challenges graduate researchers to present their research in a 60-second audio-visual explainer. The programme provides an opportunity for universities from across the world to showcase their graduate research and for the participants to build essential information and digital literacy skills to effectively communicate complex research to a general audience.
Macquarie University is excited to participate in Visualise Your Thesis again in 2024! Register here
Details
Eligibility
Entry is open to currently-enrolled PhD, MPhil, and MRes students. It is suitable for all disciplines and for students at any stage of their candidature. Visit this site to view past entries.
2024 Competition dates
| 9 April | Registrations open (complete form) |
| 24 April | VYT training (see Training tab for details) |
| 17 May | Registrations close |
| 16 July | Storytelling Your Thesis workshop (see Training tab for details) |
| 19 July | Deadline to submit entry |
| 26 July | Deadline to receive final copyright approval |
| 1 August | MQ winners announced |
| 2 September | Deadline for winning entry to VYT team at the University of Melbourne |
| Oct (TBC) | International VYT Final |
Prizes for the Macquarie Winners 2024:
- Winner: $500
- Second Place: $250
- Third Place: $125
- People's Choice Winner: $125
Note: Prize money is to be used for research costs only and is not a cash prize.
2024 International Prize Pool:
- 1st Prize: AUD $5000
- 2nd Prize: AUD $2000
- 3rd Prize: AUD $1000
Judging panel
Dr Jen Rowland
A/Prof Alice Chik
Dr Rico Piehler
Format and rules
The following resources can be accessed here
- MQ VYT presentation template
- Entrant Pack for MQ presenters
- Terms and Conditions for Entrants
- Submission Checklist for Entrants
Judging criteria
CATEGORY | CRITERIA |
TOPIC UNDERSTANDING |
|
COMMUNICATION AND LANGUAGE |
|
CREATIVITY AND ENGAGEMENT |
|
TOPIC SIGNIFICANCE |
|
Training
Visualise Your Thesis Info Session
Wednesday 24 April, 10:30 – 11:00am
To help you prepare your entry for this competition, this info session will analyse past exemplar entries and cover important competition details including entry requirements, judging criteria, and key dates.
***This workshop will be held in hybrid. Please use the respective registration link based on your preferred mode of attendance:
On campus: https://myrdc.mq.edu.au/registration/new/406981
Online: https://myrdc.mq.edu.au/registration/new/407021
VYT Crafting Clinics
***This is NOT a workshop***
Working on your Visualise Your Thesis submission? Finding yourself a little stuck? Or having difficulties carving out time to work on your entry?
Consider coming along to one (or both) of our scheduled VYT Crafting Clinics.
These crafting clinics will be set up similar to a writing retreat (but with a few more discussion opportunities). During the session, you will have the opportunity to work on your submission, discuss your ideas and troubleshoot your issues with fellow participants and a GRD Advisor.
What to bring:
- Laptop and power cord
- Draft submission
- Water bottle
- Seat cushion, headphones (optional)
VYT Crafting Clinic Sessions: (please register separately if you wish to attend both sessions)
Storytelling Your Thesis workshop
Tuesday 16 July 2:00 - 4:00pm
Communicating your research to a non-specialist audience is a valuable skill that can help broaden the reach and impact of your research. However, it can be a challenge, distilling the essence of your research into a cohesive story using language that a non-specialist audience can understand.
In this workshop we will discuss key components and considerations when communicating your research to non-specialist audiences, as well as explore the narrative of your own research.
***This workshop will be held in hybrid. Please use the respective registration link based on your preferred mode of attendance:
On campus: https://myrdc.mq.edu.au/registration/new/407141
Online: https://myrdc.mq.edu.au/registration/new/407181
Training resources
- MQ Faculty of Arts
- Visualise Your Thesis copyright and video storytelling videos
- 2019-2023 International Visualise Your Thesis figshare site (finalists’ showcase)
- Anitra Nottingham’s Visualising Your Thesis workshop slides
- CC Search – “Find content you can share, use and remix”
- Microsoft PowerPoint training resources
Trending on VYT!
#TrendingOnVYT will be won by the participant who achieves the highest number of views for their video on the #VYT2023 figshare repository and will receive a Research Impact Academy 1-year Gold Membership!
2023 MQ VYT Winners
On 31 August 2023, we announced the winners of the MQ VYT programme! We would like to thank our fantastic judges and finalists for their involvement and support. Thank you to our People's Choice voters too - we are so pleased you participated.
Congratulations to our MQ finalists and winners:
VYT Winner
- Khalia Ackermann (AIHI) ($500 research grant)
- Presentation title: Investigating the Health of Australian Sepsis Survivors
1st Runner-up
- Fabiha Farzana (MMS) ($250 research grant)
- Presentation title: Investigating DNA Damage in Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis (ALS)
2nd Runner-up
- Haiting Lan (Linguistics) ($125 research grant)
- Presentation title: Reading online text content in the presence of visual distraction: Eye movements and comprehension
People's Choice Winner
- Khalia Ackermann (AIHI) ($125 research grant)
Previous Winners
View the full list of 2023 winners that competed in the international competition on the VYT 2023 figshare repository