Forward Thinking Research Symposium

This year's event will be held on Tuesday Dec. 2nd from 1:00-4:00pm, in the AMU Monaghan Ballrooms.

 

Each year, the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs (ORSP) showcases the exciting research being done at Marquette. In celebrating research across campus, the ORSP Forward Thinking Research Symposium provides opportunities to learn more about work being done in other disciplines and fosters professional skills for students. Unlike traditional conferences, where researchers convey the results of work that has been completed, the Forward Thinking presentations focus on projects that will take place in the next 6–12 months.  

 

Highlights for 2025

Here are some highlights of this year's event: 

  • Researchers will make five-minute oral presentations — “elevator pitches” — of the work they want to do. Presentations must be accompanied by the three template PowerPoint slides that will be provided.
  • Presenters will need to be available Tuesday, December 2nd from 1:00 – 3:00 pm.
  • This will be an in-person event, to promote further discussion and collaboration.
  • Presentations should emphasize: WHY this work and your project is important (the purpose), HOW you’re going to do the work in the next 6-12 months (the process), and WHAT you want to achieve (the results).
  • Student researchers on the project must do the oral presentation, to help further their presentation skills and articulation of the work in a quick and digestible
  • Presentations should be prepared with the intent of promoting interest in funding for the future work they intend to do. Content should be prepared like a grant proposal.
  • Marquette's The MIC Speakers Lab can help students and faculty develop, organize, edit, practice, and polish the presentation. 
  • This year, awards are being offered by ORSP, the Institute for Women’s Leadership (gender-focused projects), and the Center for Data, Ethics, and Society (projects addressing the social/ethical dimensions of data). Presentations will be evaluated by those in attendance and the top three selected will be offered a $500 award.
  • Posters are not required but may be set up in the AMU reception area to allow for further discussion after the oral
  • To promote Marquette’s tradition of sponsoring academic centers, institutes, and initiatives, several of them will have tables set up in the reception area to share more about their missions and programming.

 

Full details of this event can be found in the 2025 Forward Thinking Research Symposium Guidelines.

 

Important Dates and Links

  • September – Guidelines posted on ORSP website
  • November 17 – Deadline to Submit PowerPoint Presentation is 4:00 pm.  If you did not complete the Intent to Participate form, please submit a copy of your presentation and a member of ORSP will contact you to confirm. Information needed to complete the form includes: name, email address and department (faculty) for each member of the project team, title, brief description (2-3 sentences), keywords (4), PowerPoint slides (ppt file format) and indication if displaying a supplemental poster.
  • December 2 – Day of Event 
  • 12:00 – 12:45 Set up poster (if applicable) 
  • 1:00 – 1:10     Welcome and Introduction
  • 1:15 – 2:45     Oral Presentations 
  • 3:00 – 4:00     Reception and Poster Presentations
  • Mid December – Award winners announced

If you have any questions, please contact Project Planning and Development in the Office of Research and Sponsored Programs.