Skip to Main Content
USC logo

Posters: Overview

Learning objectives

This resource will help you:  
•    Plan and create effective visual aids for your poster presentations.  
•    Understand key tips for organising your poster content and layout.  
•    Learn how to clearly present statistical methods, results, and the impact of your research in your poster.  

What are posters for?

Posters are one of the most common ways to visually present results of a project or research at professional conferences. Your poster assignments prepare you for these events. The unique nature of the format is the hybridisation of a published paper and an oral presentation. The purpose of a poster is to convey study objectives, methods, findings, and implications in the chosen field (Miller, 2007).  

Before you start  

Your poster presentation will need to meet the specific assessment requirements and expectation of your course. Read the instructions carefully. There are often poster samples and templates provided by the course coordinator.  
Map out the requirements by asking yourself these questions:  

  • What are the assessment instructions? 
  • Do the task instructions indicate the purpose of the poster?  
  • Who is your audience? 
  • What are you expected to achieve with this poster? 

Steps in developing a poster

To decide what to include in your poster, keep in mind the principle 'keep It simple'.  You do not have a lot of time to capture the audience’s interest.  Focus on a central message and convey the essential information succinctly; use visual aids, if possible.  Avoid busy or wordy layouts.   
Consider the following when brainstorming for your poster:  

What is the narrative of your poster?  

An effective poster has all parts logically connected to each other. The text and visuals should flow and tell one story.  

What information is required and what information can be excluded?  

Space is limited on a poster. Be selective with the content to give your poster a focus and more impact.  

What information can be represented with graphs, charts, figures, and images and what must be communicated in text?  

The best posters have lots of visual elements that grabs the audience’s attention.  Remember, the takeaway message is the focus of your poster. Make it count.  

How will I structure my poster?  

Normally, a poster adapts the format of a research paper (background/introduction, aims, research design, methods, results, discussion, and conclusion). Pay attention to word count and space available. Remember titles, subheadings, and references take a fair amount of space on your poster; utilise your space effectively.

 

Have you been provided with templates for this assessment? Check out the additional resources section below for examples.  

Additional resources

Access Student Services

Your input matters: Shape the future of academic skills support!

References

Miller, J. E. (2007). Preparing and presenting effective research posters. Health Services Research, 42(1p1), 311–328. https://doi.org/10.1111/j.1475-6773.2006.00588.x 

 

‌ 

© University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland, Australia | ABN 28 441 859 157 | CRICOS Provider No. 01595D