Undergraduate Writing Showcase

Fall 2019 Writing Showcase

Friday, November 22, 4:00 to 7:00 pm

East Hall

Deadline to submit a proposal: Friday, October 25 by 5:00 pm

Where to submit: https://tinyurl.com/ShowcaseSubmitF19

Writing projects do not need to be complete in order to propose a Showcase presentation.

The Writing Showcase is a celebration of excellence in first-year writing, providing you an opportunity to share your writing and learn from peers. Presenting a poster or paper at the Showcase will give you the opportunity to gain professional conference experience, receive feedback on your work in a supportive environment, and develop your resume. Additionally, $100 prizes, sponsored by the Center for Undergraduate Research and the English Department, will be awarded to the outstanding poster presentation, outstanding panel presentation, and outstanding collaborative presentation. (Students may choose to present individually or as a group for any of the presentation types.)

NEW: The University Writing Program is working to make this event more inclusive of its students. Toward this goal, this semester, students taking an online section of WRIT 1110 or WRIT 1120 may submit a proposal for a digital poster presentation (see details below). In addition, panel presentations will be live streamed on the University Writing Program’s Twitter and/or Facebook accounts.

Poster presentations are short presentations (3 to 5 minutes, including a bit of time for questions) of posters students design to represent a writing project they have completed or are working on for their WRIT 1110 or WRIT 1120 course. Poster galleries will be set up in multiple rooms at the Writing Showcase venue, and presenters will be assigned a time to stand by their posters to talk to audience members about their writing projects.

Presenters may choose to bring a flat poster to be taped to a wall or a tri-fold poster that may stand on a table. Students may choose to design posters from scratch or from a template and then print at a low cost through the EDHD Technology and Resource Center in 215 Education Building. Templates and more information here: https://bit.ly/2pDMsxL. Please make printing requests at least three days in advance.

Digital poster presentations are digital versions of poster presentations intended for students taking a WRIT course online this semester. With the same five-minute limit, students who present a digital poster will create a video, typically of a recorded PowerPoint presentation, that walks viewers through their poster, one slide at a time. Free screencasts are available with software such as Screencastify for Chrome (with a 5-minute time limit appropriate for this event). Writers with Apple computers can also use the operating system's build in screen-recording feature (Shift + Command + 5, with macOS 10.14 and above).

Note that the digital poster option is currently available only to students taking WRIT 1110 or WRIT 1120 online.

Panel presentations are longer presentations (8 to 10 minutes) that represent writing projects students have completed or are working on for their WRIT 1110 or WRIT 1120 course. These presentations often include visuals aids such as PowerPoint slides or other media. (Think TED Talks.) These presentations will be sorted into panels and scheduled in sessions of three or four presenters, with time at the end of the panel for questions and answers. Spots for panel presentations are limited, and submitters whose work cannot be included on the Showcase program may be encouraged to design and present a poster. Please note that panel presentations will be live streamed on the University Writing Program’s Twitter and/or Facebook accounts.

To submit a proposal for a presentation, complete this survey by 5:00 pm on Friday, October 25: https://tinyurl.com/ShowcaseSubmitF19. Be prepared to write a 100-200 word description of your plans for your presentation.

Showcase Presentation Workshops

The Learning Commons will host workshops that provide guidance for presenters in creating and delivering their presentations. The following workshops are available and will be held in Room 142 of the Jerome Library:

Panel Presentation Workshops:
Tuesday, November 5, 5:00 to 6:00 pm
Wednesday, November 13, 5:00 to 6:00 pm

Poster Presentation Workshops:
Wednesday, November 6, 5:00 to 6:00 pm
Tuesday, November 12, 5:00 to 6:00 pm

If you are unable to attend one of the above workshops for your presentation type, contact Emma Guthrie.  

Additionally, we will offer some guidance materials for online students presenting a digital poster. Information is forthcoming, but these materials should also be available in early November.

Poster eTemplates and On-Campus Poster Printing Service

Printing posters can be a lengthy and costly endeavor. Luckily, BGSU's Education Program has a poster printer and template system open for all students to use, free of charge. Learn more about templating and printing your Showcase posters here.