In the 2021-2022 academic year, K-State graduate students from across the institution presented and were recognized for their research and scholarly work in events held locally, at the state level, and regionally. This was the first time since early 2020 that graduate students had an opportunity to present their work in a face-to-face setting.
The year’s research presentation events kicked off with Research and the State held in October 2021. Twenty-nine graduate students representing 16 fields of study presented their research posters to faculty, staff, and post-doc judges and the campus community. Judges selected 10 award winners to receive a $250 scholarship and to represent the university and present their work in the 19th Capitol Graduate Research Summit. Read a full news release recognizing the Research and the State winners.
Grad students present their research at the Capitol
On March 29th, winners of Research and the State traveled to the State Capitol Building in Topeka, KS to present their research posters in the Capitol Graduate Research Summit (CGRS). The CGRS is an annual statewide summit that features research of graduate students at Kansas State University, the University of Kansas, the University of Kansas Medical Center, Wichita State University, Emporia State University, Fort Hays State University and Pittsburg State University.
This event provides a valuable opportunity for graduate students to share the value of their research to state legislators. Academic and industry judges evaluate the presentations and select award recipients from each university. This year’s winners from K-State were Anne Lovett, master’s student in veterinary biomedical science from Manhattan, and Carlos Pires, Brazil, doctoral student in agronomy from Brazil. They each received a $500 scholarship. Read a full news release recognizing Anne and Carlos.
Masters student receives regional recognition for three-minute presentation
In February and March, over 40 graduate students rose to the challenge of presenting their research to a non-expert audience within three minutes, using only a single, static slide in the annual Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition.
From the first round of competition held in February, 10 finalists were selected to compete on March 1. Judges in the final round selected a first and second place winner, and a People’s Choice winner was selected by audience vote.
Mehreen Iftikhar, master’s student in grain science from Karachi, Pakiston, won both first place ($500 scholarship) and the People’s Choice award ($125 scholarship) for her presentation “Accelerated shelf-life study of rice with added nutrients.” Kiana Schulze, doctoral student in kinesiology from Shawnee, KS won second place and a $250 scholarship for her research presentation, “Pulmonary hypertension: Not just a lung disease?”
As the first-place winner, Iftikhar represented K-State in the 2022 Midwestern Association of Graduate Schools’ (MAGS) Three Minute Thesis Competition, held in Milwaukee, WI on April 8. Iftikhar continued her winning streak by also taking home the People’s Choice award at the MAGS 3MT competition. Read a full news release about K-State’s 3MT competition.