Most science and engineering posters use the same general format: title, authors and institutional affiliations, abstract, introduction, methods, results, conclusions, acknowledgements and references.
We will discuss the needed content for each of these sections briefly below:
- Title - the title should effectively highlight the subject of your research in ten words or less
- Authors and institutional affiliations - a list of the names of all those who have contributed to the project in a significant way. Be sure to consult your advisor on this subject. Authorship has serious implications with regard to intellectual property issues. For each author be sure that the department and institution where they work is identified.
- Abstract - this is a succinct summary, usually 150 words or less, that identifies the research problem studied, the methods used, the results obtained, and the significance of those results.
- Introduction - this section should provide a brief overview of the reasons that the research was initiated and provide a background on the materials and methods used in the study.
- Methods - the experimental methods used to accomplish the research should be succinctly outlined in this section.
- Results - this section should outline the results of your work. Since posters are a visual method of presentation, the bulk of this section should be graphical rather than textual.
- Conclusions - this section should provide a succinct summary of the conclusions you have derived from your work as well as a statement of the direction of any future work if relevant and appropriate.
- Acknowledgements - This section should credit all of those individuals who have provided assistance to you in accomplishing your work. First and foremost be sure to credit any funding sources that may have underwritten your research. This is particularly important if a federal agency or foundation provided funding for your project. As always it is best to check with your advisor in order to identify all of the appropriate individuals and/or agencies.
- References - Since research isn't accomplished in a vacuum, you will need to credit the relevant work of others in one or more sections of your poster. As in a technical paper, you will need to include a citation for each and every source. Since the format for references differs from discipline to discipline, be sure to consult your advisor concerning the preferred format for citations.