Presenting Your Thesis
We host Thesis Presentation Days in the fall and spring. Participation is mandatory, as presenting your thesis is an Honors requirement.
- In the Fall semester, our presentation day is for our fall graduates, or anyone that will be off campus in the spring and is completing their thesis early. This is typically held in the Honors Suite, 306 Bowne Hall. Refreshments are provided, and all are encouraged to attend.
- In the Spring semester, all remaining graduating Honors students present their thesis projects in concurrent sessions throughout the day. We host a lunch for all presenters, faculty and the Honors community.
Many students have questions about Thesis Presentation Day. We've tried to answer the most common questions below, but please get in touch with your Honors Advisor if you need further details!
Presentation day is your day to celebrate your thesis and the incredible work you have done to get to this point! You will be presenting to an interdisciplinary audience, so remember to cater your presentation to the general public.
Instead of trying to fit your whole thesis into 10 minutes, you can give a brief overview of your topic, the journey and your outcomes. We do not expect you to cover everything, and this is not a defense.
Beyond your topic and outcomes, your presentation can include:
- How you decided on your topic
- What were the challenges you overcame while working on your thesis
- What has this process taught you
- Anything connected to your thesis experience
Don't forget to thank your Faculty Thesis Advisor and Thesis Reader, along with anyone else who has supported you (especially if they are coming to presentation day!)
Only by not showing up!
Thesis Presentation Day is a celebration of your thesis and all of your hard work. This is not a defense, and you are not being graded. This is simply a required milestone and celebration of the Honors Program.
We want you to have an opportunity to celebrate everything that went into accomplishing your thesis and the Renée Crown University Honors Program.
Yes, we do have some examples from past projects but please also recognize that thesis presentations can look many ways and although these are formats, we suggest, we also support you presenting in a way that best displays your personal project.
View Thesis Presentation Day Examples Here
- Thesis Presentation Day is always on one of the semester's reading days.
- When you submit your Final Draft, you will be asked questions about Thesis Presentation Day conflicts.
- On the form you will be asked for times that you CANNOT present. Providing times that you have an academic commitment or perhaps your advisor can't attend are VALID conflicts.
- Using the information provided in the Final Draft submissions we will build the schedule for the day.
- Please keep in mind, the schedule accommodates approximately 170 students, and hundreds of other advisors, readers, and guests. Once the schedule is published it is FIXED. If something comes up and you cannot present at the time you are scheduled for, you must contact your Honors advisor to make them aware of the problem.
- Important(!): You will also be asked to provide your final project information at this time. The name and thesis title you provide will be used in our convocation program booklet, and all end-of-year programming materials.
- For Thesis Presentation Day, you will be assigned to a classroom, a 'panel time' (e.g. 9 am - 10 am) and a presentation time (9:20am). Your panel time represents the hour-long slot during which you are required to be in the classroom. During this hour you will watch two peer presentations and then present your own thesis.
- A zoom link will also be provided for you to share with off campus friends and family.
- Thesis Presentations are not recorded, but students may record their own presentations or ask a friend to record on zoom.
- We will publish the schedule on the main Honors website at least two weeks before Thesis Presentation Day, so you will know when you are presenting and who else is in your panel.
Both your Faculty Thesis Advisor and Thesis Reader will be invited to attend Thesis Presentation Day and will be provided with a copy of the full schedule, but please invite them yourselves as well. They will be pleased to know you'd like them to attend.
You are free to use whatever software suits your project and that you are comfortable with. Most students use either Google slides or Microsoft PowerPoint. We've also had students experiment with less traditional and more engaging formats such as Prezi, Swipe, Haiku Deck, and Adobe Spark.
Note: You will receive instructions from Honors about how to submit your prepared presentation file to through our Thesis Presentation Day Materials Form.
- Students cannot bring their presentations on USB or external media due to the time lag it takes for the computer to find, scan, and load your file. We need students to utilize our Thesis Presentation Day Materials Form.
On Thesis Presentation Day, when it is your turn to present, you will just access your presentation from the Honors host's schedule on the classroom PC.
Each classroom has standard audio/visual equipment and you are free to use any of it: a DVD player, a document camera (which displays the actual object on a screen), and a computer (with Windows, including PowerPoint software).
Note: You are free to use whatever software suits your project and that you are comfortable with. Most students use either Google slides or Microsoft PowerPoint. We've also had students experiment with less traditional and more engaging formats such as Prezi, Swipe, Haiku Deck, and Adobe Spark.
Note: You will receive instructions from Honors about how to submit your prepared presentation file to through our Thesis Presentation Day Materials Form.
- Students cannot bring their presentations on USB or external media due to the time lag it takes for the computer to find, scan, and load your file. We need students to utilize our Thesis Presentation Day Materials Form.
On Thesis Presentation Day, when it is your turn to present, you will just access your presentation from the Honors host's schedule on the classroom PC.
Your presentation, which may be in any form appropriate to your discipline, should last ~15 minutes, plus 5 minutes for questions, discussion and transition. You will be part of an hour-long panel with two other presenters, and you are required to stay for your entire one-hour panel.
Be sure your oral presentation does not exceed the allotted time; our schedule is tight! Time your talk, and practice speaking in front of a mirror. Also: it's ok to use PowerPoint, but don't simply read your slides out loud. Instead, talk to us about what you did and why it matters to you. (PowerPoint is best used for images, or data, not text.)
Hint: Don't try to cram your entire Thesis into 15 minutes! Instead, say to yourself "I have 15 minutes. What can I say that will best explain my thesis in that time frame?".
Arrive 10 minutes before your panel hour begins. You will be grouped in a panel that is an hour long. We ask that you make every effort to watch the other students who are before or after your panel. Thesis Presentation Day is a great way to support your Honors peers in their work, and also makes the day go much more smoothly in terms of transitioning between presentations.
We strongly encourage you to invite your Faculty Thesis Advisor, Thesis Reader, family, and friends to attend Thesis Presentation Day. This is a significant academic accomplishment and an opportunity to share your hard work with the people who have supported you.
The rooms are large so there is space for everyone. Some audience members will want to come just for an individual presentation but cannot stay for others, and they are welcome to do so, although you'll stay for your entire panel.
For Fall Presentation Day we have refreshments during the presentations.
For Spring Presentation Day, we provide a celebratory lunch in HOL 500 from 12pm-1pm for all presenters and their guests.
No, unfortunately, due to timing we ask that all students submit your prepared presentation file to through our Thesis Presentation Day Materials Form.
- Students cannot bring their presentations on USB or external media due to the time lag it takes for the computer to find, scan, and load your file. We need students to utilize our Thesis Presentation Day Materials Form.
On Thesis Presentation Day, when it is your turn to present, you will just access your presentation from the Honors host's schedule on the classroom PC.
Yes! Please do wear your Renée Crown University Honors Program pin!
If you do not have one, and need one, please stop by the office, and let Honors know. We would be happy to get one for you.
You celebrate!
We invite you to celebrate with us.
In the Fall semester we will have refreshments in the Honors Suite.
In the Spring semester we will provide a celebratory lunch in HOL 500 from 12pm-1pm for all thesis presenters and guests. We encourage you to invite your Faculty Thesis Advisor, your Thesis Reader, friends, family and Honors peers.
After Thesis Presentation Day, the celebration isn't over, because we still have Honors Convocation too!