Poster Presentations: Creating your Poster

Most posters are created on PowerPoint. To use PowerPoint to create a post, the slide must be resized to match the size of the poster before images, text, and other information is added to the poster. Otherwise, the poster will not print properly. To resize a PowerPoint slide, follow these directions:

1. Open PowerPoint
2. Select the "Design" tab
3. Open "Slide Size" and select "Custom Slide Size"
4. Enter the width and height in the boxes, using inches, and click "Ok." The typical poster is 36" high and 48" wide. NOTE: If you are printing at the University Printing Services, set the margins to 35.4" x 47.2" to account for the margin area of the printer. Otherwise, your poster will be more expensive.
5. Select "Ensure Fit"
6. Your poster is now ready to be worked on

You can also download PowerPoint templates online, just be prepared to customize them for your specific needs. 

While there are two content items any poster must have, a title and your name, keep in mind that a poster for a class or University event may require a course number, University logo, and other information. Please look at the requirements for your event, class, symposium, etc., for essential content items. 

Other items you may want to include:

• Research question
• Abstract, if not included elsewhere,
• Images that illustrate your research
• Method of research
• Results of your research and/or experiment
• Data visualizations, such as charts and graphs
• Citations (use only a few, the rest should go on a handout, unless a full bibliography is required by this event, class, symposium, etc.)
• Interview Questions
• Interesting Quotes