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JMU Graduate Academy

3MT® - Three Minute Thesis

3MT® - Würzburg Edition

 3MT® is a contest conducted by universities worldwide using simple rules and judging criteria. The main purpose is simple: 

Present your doctoral thesis 

  • from any research area,
  • in English,
  • in three minutes,
  • using one slide as an illustration.

JMU joined 3MT® for the first time in 2018, taking part in the European contest organized by the Coimbra Group. Our local winner was selected for the European finals at the University of Salamanca and came in third. The JMU Graduate Academy and the Professional Development at JMU are co-organizing the event.

Why should you participate? Being able to explain complex thoughts and results to a non-specialist audience is a core competence for every professional at the doctoral level. Participation is thus good for your CV, but not only that! Scientists and scholars are increasingly asked to communicate their work to society, in order to raise awareness, spread knowledge, and build trust. And above all, sharing your work and research results in this way is a lot of fun! 

We will help you to prepare for the contest with two preparation workshops. The local Würzburg contest will be hosted in March.

The winner of the 3MT® - Würzburg Edition 2026 will be awarded a prize of €300, donated by Universitätsbund Würzburg e.V. The two runner-ups will be awarded a book prize. All participants will receive a certificate and the video of their performance. 

Find out how to participate below!

You are an advanced doctoral researcher, at or close to the end of your project, from any academic field at the University of Würzburg?

You have results to talk about, not only plans?

To apply for the 3MT workshops, please send an e-mail either to jmu-graduate-academy@uni-wuerzburg.de. You can also call us to discuss details of participation: 31-82758 (Krischan Brandl) or 31-87767 (Natalie Rauscher).

Deadline for application: December 1st, 2025.

Apply by writing us an email responding to these questions: What field of study are you in? What is the working title of your doctoral project? What are the (first) results you want to discuss?

We will offer two preparation workshops in December 2025 and January 2026.

The 3MT - Würzburg Edition will take place
- on Friday, March 6th 2026, 15:00-17:00 
- at the Lecture Hall, Graduate Schools Building, Hubland Nord, Beatrice-Edgell‑Weg 21

All presentations will be video-recorded, and the video of the local winner ‑ as judged by an interdisciplinary jury according to the 3MT judging criteria ‑ will be submitted for the Coimbra Group contest  at European level. Among the entries of all participating universites, Coimbra Group will select three finalists, who will get the opportunity to present at the annual Coimbra Group meeting. Coimbra awards €2000 to the 3MT winner and €1500 each to the runner-ups. The 2026 Coimbra Meeting will take place at University of Granada, June 16-19 2026.

The workshops will take place in two sessions of about 3hrs on December 16th 2025, 2pm-5.30pm and in January 15th 2026, 2pm-5.30pm  

The first session will cover:

  • "Theory" on 3MT® : why, what for, what to keep in mind
  • stage presence and presenting
  • practical exercises
  • group discussion

Between the first and the second session, participants will develop a fist version of their 3MT® talk.

The talk will be presented in the second workshop and we will share helpful feedback in the group. 

Participants will then refine the talk on their own for the local contest in March. 

Additional resources for presenters

1. Tutorials:

2. Past Winning Presentation:

Watch 3MT® presentations from around the world, espially those of the 3MT® Coimbra Group finals (Coimbra Youtube channel)

See winners from: