Research Posters: Getting Started

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Posters are widely used in the academic community, and most conferences include poster presentations in their program.  Research posters summarize information or research concisely and attractively to share information and generate discussion. 

The poster is a combination of a brief text mixed with tables, graphs, and images. At a conference, the researcher stands by the poster display while other participants can come and view the presentation and interact with the author.

"What is a research poster?" (2018, February 16). How to create a research poster: Poster basics. Retrieved from https://guides.nyu.edu/c.php?g=276826&p=1846154

Posters may include the following elements. Depending on your specific discipline and the purpose for your poster, some elements may be adjusted or removed completely.

1. Title - A descriptive title should define the topic and grab the attention of the audience.
2. Creator - Include your name and affiliation.
3. Introduction - Summarize the purpose of the research, methods used, results, and conclusion.
4. Methods - This section explains how research data was gathered, and what instruments were used.
5. Results - For a research poster, results will usually be presented using charts, graphs, and other visualizations.
6. Discussion - Discuss conclusions and lessons learned from the research process, as well as future research potential within the topic area. Interesting conclusions should be shown in a prominent location.
7. Acknowledgements - It may be necessary to acknowledge organizations which contributed to the research process. Some examples of acknowledgements may include: grant funding, special permissions, and technical assistance.
8. References - Use the correct style guide to credit sources which were cited.