Designing Scientific Research Posters

By Dan Kenzie and Mary McCall

Designing a Scientific Poster

Content of a Scientific Poster

• Title– An effective title should clearly communicate the

subject of the poster in a way that appeals to a reader. Keep the length of your title to 1 to 2 lines.

• Abstract – An abstract is often not necessary, because a poster

presents similar material as an abstract. Refer to the guidelines for your conference.

• Introduction– Generate interest in your topic with a minimum of

background detail and jargon.

Content of a Scientific Poster

• Materials and Methods– Include a rationale for why you chose the methods

you did and, if they would help, tables or figures.

• Results– Start with a summary of your results. Then, discuss

the relationship between the data and your research question.

• Conclusions – Explain the significance of major findings.

(Connecting this study to previous research can help).

Content of a Scientific Poster

• References – See conferences guidelines for appropriate format.– If this section becomes too long, decrease the font

size.

• Acknowledgements – Acknowledge anyone who gave you feedback or

otherwise contributed to the project, including financial contributors. This section can also disclose any conflicts of interest or commitment.

Visual Design of a Scientific Poster

• Layout– Maintain sufficient white space, keep column

alignments logical, and provide clear cues to your readers how they should read your poster elements.

• Content– Do not overload the poster with text. It should be

roughly 20% text, 40% figures, 40% space.– Left-align your text. (Fully justified creates

gaps)

• Font– Use a non-serif font for the title and headings and

a serif font for body text to promote readability.

Visual Design of a Scientific Poster

• Color– Use 2-3 colors for your poster design and make sure

the background and text have a high contrast.– Do not chose a dark and/or busy background. – Avoid very bright color combinations.

• Diagrams– Give your graphs titles and labels for each axis. – Never give your graphs colored backgrounds, grid

lines, or boxes. – Avoid displaying 2-D data in 3-D graphs. – Make sure that details on graphs and photographs

can be comfortably viewed from 6 feet away.

Considering Conference Guidelines

• Always carefully read conference guidelines, which may or may not give specifics on:– What to include– Size of the poster– Available materials (Should you post to a

board yourself?)– Which documentation style to use– Other expectations

Where Can Students Find More Help?

Purdue University Writing Lab

Heavilon 226

• Web: http://owl.english.purdue.edu/• Phone: (765) 494-3723• Email: owl@owl.english.purdue.edu

Works Referenced

Design and Layout. (2011). Retrieved from:https://www.makesigns.com/tutorials/poster-design-layout.aspx

Graves, L. Scientific poster design [PDF document]. Retrieved from: www.cns.cornell.edu/documents/ScientificPosters.pdf

The Parts of a Scientific Poster. (2011).Retrieved from: https://www.makesigns.com/tutorials/scientific-poster-parts.aspx

Purrington, C. (n.d.) Designing conference posters. Retrieved fromhttp://colinpurrington.com/tips/academic/posterdesign

Schlamadinger, D. How to make a scientific research poster. [PDF document]. Retrieved from: acssa.ucsd.edu/forms/ACSSA_posters_howto2_DES.pdf

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