Research Posters

Before You Begin

• Decide what program you will use to design your poster. Programs suitable for making research posters include:
  • PowerPoint
  • Microsoft Publisher
  • Adobe Photoshop
• Set the dimensions of your poster to the correct size before beginning to work. A common size for research posters is 36" by 48", however, each event may have its own required poster dimensions.
• Know what information you will be including on the poster. It may be helpful to develop an outline of your research to determine which parts you should include.
• Landscape layouts (where the poster is wider than it is tall) work best for research posters. Portrait layouts may require people to bend or stoop to view the bottom of your poster at a session. Only use a portrait layout if it is required.

Format and Layout

• Develop a draft layout of your poster. Decide how many columns will be included and where the images will be placed.
• Your poster should be easy to follow and understand. Think of your layout visually. Your poster should flow in the order the information should be read. This usually starts at the top of the left column, follows the column down, moves to the next column, and ends at the bottom right.
• Leave a lot of white space or space where only the background is visible. This keeps the poster from being too cluttered and helps the flow of information.
• The area at the top of your poster should run the entire width of your poster. This area should include the poster title and presenter name.
• Each section should be clearly labeled with a heading. Common headings include Introduction, Abstract, Methods, Results, Conclusions, and References.
• Use grids in the program of your choice to keep columns aligned and of equal width.
• Text in columns should be between 45 and 65 characters per line.
• Use bullet points and/or lists when possible to make the poster easier to read.
• If your poster is being judged at an event, follow the provided guidelines when making design decisions.

Content

• Keep the word count of your poster under 1000 words. Too much text will make a poster look cluttered and will be hard to read.
• Use a text hierarchy. The title should use a font size between 80-120pt. The author or presenter's name should use at least a 48pt font. The headers should use a 36pt font or larger. Body text should use at least a 24pt font.
• Use a Serif font (e.g., Times New Roman) for the body text of your poster. Using a Serif font make your poster easier and faster to read.
• You can use either a Serif font or a Sans Serif font (e.g., Helvetica) for your headers and title since these will be shorter areas of text. Using Sans Serif fonts can help separate the headers from the body.
• Do not use any unusual or highly stylized fonts like Comic Sans or word art. These make your poster harder to read.
• The title should be short, no longer than two lines. You should use a title that catches the audience's attention and avoids heavy use of technical jargon.
• Do not use any elements, including colors, fonts, and images that will distract your audience from the information in your poster. If you have any doubt about something being too much or not working, then leave it out.

Images, Charts, and Graphs

• Use high-resolution images. If you are enlarging images, make sure that the images are not pixelated before printing your poster.
• Use charts and graphs to show research results.
• You must cite images or information used in charts and graphs if it is not your own.
• Place images near the related text to provide context.
• Title and caption your images to help explain their importance and relevance.
• Do not use complex graphs or charts. Simplify these to show only the necessary information.
• Do not use tables. Instead, create a chart or graph based on the information you need from the table.

Color Scheme

• Pick complementary colors when choosing your color scheme. You can use a color wheel or a palette generator to help.
• Stick to using two or three colors. Too many colors will be distracting to your audience.
• Start with colors that naturally match your research topic. For example, use greens for a botanical topic, pick the main color of the artwork or animal featured in your research, or pull a color from an image used in your poster.
• Use a contrasting color only in small amounts to create emphasis or impact.
• Limit the use of primary or bright colors. These tend to be distracting. Focus instead on pastels and other light colors.
• It is best to use a neutral color like white, gray, or beige for the background.
• The text should highly contrast background color for readability. Black text on a white background is the easiest for people to read. Do not put text directly on a pattern or image, since that will be difficult to read.

Books

Helpful Websites

Video Tutorials

Poster Templates

Palette Generators