Purdue Undergrad Research Pitch Competition

March 23, 2023 | In-Person and Livestreamed

YOUTUBE LIVESTREAM LINK

CONGRATULATIONS to our 2023 winners!

1st Place: Aniya Edwards

2nd Place: Carl Russell III

3rd Place: James Rooney

Audience Favorite: Aniya Edwards

Who is presenting?

• Aniya Edwards, College of Engineering. "Humidity: A Key Factor in the Properties of Recycled Textile Reinforced Mortars."
• Sam King, College of Pharmacy. "BAF170 in Neuroendocrine Prostate Cancer."
• James Rooney, College of Pharmacy. "The Role of Methylation in the Protective Activity of Hsp31."
• Carl Russell III, College of Engineering. "The Analyte Might Be Hard to Detect, but We're Going to Stick to It: Biosensor Development."
• Yufan Zhou, College of Science. "Hamiltonian Viewpoint for Chemical Kinetics."

Purpose

What giant leaps are undergraduate researchers completing at Purdue? The Undergraduate Research Pitch Competition highlights undergraduate researchers' projects while promoting concise and effective storytelling during this event celebrating undergraduate research.

What is a "research pitch"?

A research pitch is a (very) short story describing your research project in a way that describes your work to an audience, usually a general audience. A research pitch is similar to an "elevator pitch," but focuses on your research project and experience instead of yourself to employers or graduate programs.

Who can enter?

The pitch competition is open to any currently enrolled Purdue University - West Lafayette undergraduate involved in a research or creative endeavor in any major and discipline. Your work can be an independent project or one working with a research mentor.

How do I enter?

• Upload your research pitch to YouTube - for privacy, you should upload it and "unlist" the video so only those with the link can access it.
  • The research pitch should be no longer than three minutes.
  • The video submission can include whatever you would like.
  • Here is an example research pitch that is prepared for selection: https://youtu.be/kgGMrThEhCM.
• The live event allows one PowerPoint slide, but your initial YouTube recording can be anything.
• Send the research pitch YouTube link via this Qualtrics form.

How am I selected?

• A panel of judges will rate your video submission and will determine the top seven presentations.
• The top seven submissions will be announced by March 9, 2023.

Live Undergraduate Research Pitch Competition

• Presenters must present in person and audience members may be present in person in Fowler Hall or watch the livestream.
• Participants are allowed one static PowerPoint slide during their talk.
• A panel of judges will evaluate the three-minute pitches using the following categories.
• The judges will have the ability to ask one question to each presenter with a one-minute response per question allowed. **New for 2023**
• The top presenters and an audience favorite will be announced at the end of the event.

Are there awards?

• $300 for 1st, $200 for 2nd, $100 for 3rd, and $100 for audience favorite.
  • An audience favorite is determined by those at the in-person event.
  • Awards will be distributed through the Division of Financial Aid.
• Sponsorship gifts will also be available provided by HuHot ($50 gift card), University Bookstore ($50 gift card), Monster MiniGolf (2 Family packs, 15 free admit tickets, and 200 free tickets), and Bruno's Pizza & Big O's Sports Room ($25 gift card).

Resources

• "Want to be a great storyteller? First, break these habits"
• Learn to condense your research story into a Three Minute Thesis
• Avoid "Death by PowerPoint"
• Prepare your own "TEDx Talk"
• Watch other undergraduate research pitch competition videos 

Funded by SOGA

Past Events

2020 Research Pitch Program

2021 Research Pitch Program | Photos

2022 Research Pitch Program | Photos

2023 Research Pitch Program | Photos

(Note: Due to Protect Purdue guidelines, 2021 did not have a paper program to pass out to the audience.)