Showcase your expertise and passion for research.
Announcing the 2020 winners
We thank all students for their outstanding submissions in this year’s competition!
The 2020 Undergraduate Research Poster Competition winners are:
APPLIED SCIENCES
1st – Jordan Krenkevich, Faculty of Science
Project - Using machine learning to suppress the skin response in breast microwave sensing
Supervisor: Stephen Pistorius
2nd – Mateus Braga, Price Faculty of Engineering
Project - Auto-link UAV to CAD: Software to bridge the gap between UAV design optimization and CAD
Supervisor: Philip Ferguson
3rd – Anh Thi Dang, Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences
Project - Effects of pre-treatment on phenolic compounds in yellow and black Mustard
Supervisor: Usha Thiyam-Hollander
CREATIVE WORKS
1st – Max Sandred, Faculty of Architecture
Project – Theatres of architectural imagination
Supervisor: Lisa Landrum
2nd – Mathew Glowacki, Faculty of Architecture
Project – The effects of different urban scenarios on urban wildlife
Supervisor: Kamni Gill
3rd – Lindsay Mamchur, Faculty of Architecture
Project – Atget and I: A comparative photographic reading
Supervisor: Susan Close
HEALTH SCIENCES
1st – Katrina Leong, Max Rady College of Medicine, Rady Faculty of Health Sciences
Project – Building on patient experience to develop an approach to transitional care in heart failure management
Supervisor: Gayle Halas
2nd – Amy Fernando, Faculty of Science
Project – Preventing mitochondrial dysfunction and cell death in the lipid exposed cardiomyocyte
Supervisor: Joseph Gordon
3rd – Tooba Razi, Faculty of Science
Project – Exploring FBXO7 as a candidate chromosome instability gene in colorectal cancer
Supervisor: Kirk J. McManus
NATURAL SCIENCES
1st – Andrea Sutherland, Clayton H. Riddell Faculty of Environment, Earth, and Resources
Project – A case study on greenwashing by Manitoba Hydro
Supervisor: Stephane McLachlan
2nd – Guneet Uppal, Faculty of Science
Project – Structure elucidation of a platinum complex by x-ray crystallography
Supervisor: David Herbert
3rd – Danielle Fowke, Clayton H. Riddell Faculty of Environment, Earth, and Resources
Project – The effects of oil drilling noise on reproductive success of chestnut-collared longspur (Calcarius ornatus) in Western Canada
Supervisor: Nicola Koper
SOCIAL SCIENCES AND HUMANITIES
1st – Lily Pankratz, Faculty of Arts
Project – Trends in mental health service utilization according to perinatal status: Results from a nationally representative sample
Supervisor: Kristin Reynolds
2nd – Hannah Derksen, Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences
Project – Exploring challenges faced by the charitable food sector in Manitoba during the first wave of the COVID-19 pandemic
Supervisor: Natalie Riediger
3rd – Bronwon Grocot, Faculty of Arts
Project – Associations between pain characteristics & suicidality Across chronic pain conditions
Supervisor: René El-Gabalawy
About the competition
The Undergraduate Research Poster Competition is an annual event that takes place every fall at UM. $5,000 in cash prizes (three awards in each category) are up for grabs in five categories:
- Applied Sciences
- Creative Works
- Health Sciences
- Natural Sciences
- Social Sciences and Humanities
The event gives undergraduate students the opportunity to present research they’ve conducted with their advisors over the past year. The breadth and variety of research is significant.
Eligibility
The Poster Competition is open to all UM undergraduate students who:
- Are enrolled at UM as an undergraduate student
- Have a UM advisor
- Are on track to obtain a UM undergraduate degree
Note: Students who graduated in spring 2020 are eligible to participate, as long as the research represented on the poster was completed while they were and undergraduate student.
The Undergraduate Research Poster Competition is a recognized UM Co-Curricular Record activity and all participants will be recognized.

Info, dates and deadlines
Check back in September 2021 for the dates and deadlines for the 2021 Poster Competition.
Competition format
Students will produce a poster and submit it in a pdf format. They must also submit an accompanying video with their poster, when registering. The posters and a link to the videos will be displayed on the poster competition website for viewing and judging beginning Oct. 27 thru Oct. 28, with winners announced Oct. 29 at 1:30 pm on this webpage.
Poster specifications
48”w x 36”h – landscape – pdf file no greater than 25 mb in size
Include the correct UM logo per the brand guidelines
You are NOT required to print your poster for this online competition.
File naming requirements
Use this file naming convention for your pdf file
2020-UMUPC-CATEGORY-LASTNAME-FIRSTNAME.pdf (upper or lowercase)
Video specifications
The video should capture you explaining your poster in a maximum time of 3 minutes.
- Check out the UM3MT webpage for tips and videos on presenting your research in a succinct way.
- Your video will allow viewers to watch you present as if you were at an in-person poster session.
- It is not required that your poster be in view (in the background) while filming your presentation.
- The poster pdf will be on the webpage next to the link to your video presentation, when uploaded, to allow viewers to see your poster and watch your presentation.
Video must be no longer than 3 minutes in length.
The link can be Public or Unlisted but must be included in the submission form as a link. Information on the difference between these two options and how to change these settings can be found on this Google Youtube info page.
When posting your video to YouTube include the following info in your video:
-
Title of your poster
-
Your name
-
Your research mentor/supervisor’s name, department, faculty
-
Category you are competing in (applied sciences, creative works, health sciences, natural sciences, social sciences and humanities)
-
This text:
The Undergraduate Research Poster Competition is an annual event that takes place every fall at the University of Manitoba (UM). $5,000 in cash prizes (three awards in each category) are up for grabs in five categories: Applied Sciences, Creative Works, Health Sciences, Natural Sciences, and Social Sciences and Humanities.
In 2020, due to the ongoing pandemic the competition is taking place online. It is sponsored by the VP Research and International office. The competition provides UM undergraduate students the opportunity to present research (including a literature search) they’ve conducted with their advisors over the past year. The breadth and variety of research is significant.
The Undergraduate Research Poster Competition is a recognized UM Co-Curricular Record activity and all participants receive this recognition. Each poster is adjudicated and awarding of prizes is based on the judging criterion. Details can be found on the Undergraduate Research Poster Competition webpage
Video FAQs
How long should my video be?
Maximum length is 3 minutes.
How do I record the video?
The video can be recorded using a camera or smartphone and then uploaded to YouTube. As long as it is an uploaded video of you presenting your research posted on Youtube, how you record it is up to you.
How do I post a video to YouTube?
Visit Google's page for How To upload videos to YouTube from your computer, smartphone or tablet.
How do I make my poster Unlisted on YouTube, to protect my Intellectual Property, if I am planning to publish my research?
This link to Google provides an overview of the difference between a Private and Unlisted video. For the Poster Competition you must provide either a Public or Unlisted link to the video in the submission form.
Resources for creating a research poster
86+ million tips for creating a research poster presentation from Google
Ten Simple Rules for a Good Poster Presentation - from 2007, but still relevant!
8 ways to create a powerful research poster - tips on using white space, colour, organization and fonts.
Design tips for creating arts and humanities posters – from Mark McDayter’s blog
Poster criteria: How the judges will decide
The judges will be evaluating your posters on the following criteria:
Criteria | Points |
---|---|
Scholarly Content/ Scientific/Creative Content | 25 Points |
Appropriate use of images, graphic representation, and/or tables | 10 Points |
For Non-Creative Works (Natural Sciences, Health Sciences, Applied Sciences, Social Sciences and Humanities): Appropriateness of headings, clear objectives and conclusions. For Creative Works: Clear description/explanation of creative process, identification of issue explored and learning that resulted from the creative project. |
25 Points |
Overall impression and significance of research | 25 Points |
Effective communication to the audience through written or visual language that avoids the use of jargon | 15 Points |
Total | 100 Points |
FAQs
I am now in a Master’s program at UM. Can I submit a poster I completed before I graduated?
YES. As long as you were a UMundergraduate student and the poster was completed on/before you graduated in spring 2020.
I am a UM student doing research at another university – am I still eligible to participate in the competition?
Yes.
Could I submit a poster for a project that isn't completed yet?
YES. We don’t want to discourage you, so if you are comfortable entering the competition with uncompleted work, we will accept the poster.
I did a project this summer with a company where I worked. Could I present the research work I did with them at this competition?
YES. As long as you are currently enrolled as an undergraduate student and you have a UM advisor, we will accept the poster.
This summer I participated in a project with many people working on it. Should my poster demonstrate the entirety of the project or just my contribution as a research assistant?
Preferably, you should be the first author of the research on the poster. A disclaimer is highly recommended. You need to be able to identify your role in the context of the larger project. Also, you must contact the others involved for their permission should you present the entirety of the project.
How do I know which category my poster will fall under?
You should check with your research advisor.
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For more information contact
Office of the Vice-President (Research and International)