Create a Poster

Overview/Introduction

General guidelines and advice for creating an academic poster. 

Details

Guidelines - Format (PowerPoint)

• You must create the slide and set the size before adding content.
• Sizing the poster in PowerPoint:
  • Design Tab >  Slide Size, Custom Slide Size
• Average Poster Size – 30’’ x 40’’ (inches)

Elements Of Your Poster

• Title
• Name
• Abstract
• Introduction
• Methods
• Data/Results
• Conclusions
• Acknowledgements
• References

Guidelines - Font

• No smaller than 20pt
• Title should be at least 60pt
• Be careful of fancy, elaborate, script or any font that may be hard to read from a distance; remember, simpler is almost always better.
• Also, please be aware that custom fonts will not be carried over when you submit the poster. The computer that is printing the poster may not have the font necessary. Please stay with using standard, common fonts.

Guidelines - Color

• Light backgrounds with dark text work best.
• Watch color combinations
• Images on your screen reproduce differently on a poster.

Guidelines - Graphics

• Graphs – good
• Clip art – if tasteful
• Photos – good, just don’t use too many
• Make sure any extra picture or clip art you use is related to your specific topic and is not too general.

Things to Remember:

• Your poster should be standalone.
• Font should be readable from 3 feet away.
• Bullet points keep people’s attention better than putting your whole paper on the poster.
• View menu (in PowerPoint) – Gridlines and Guides allows you to align and space your poster elements properly.

FAQs

See Also