My 3MT Experience

After winning the AUT 3 Minute Thesis competition, I was lucky enough to go to the University of Queensland (UoQ) in Brisbane, Australia, to represent AUT at the TransTasman 3MT final. This is a short post about my experience there.

I stayed at a hotel about 20 minutes walk from the UoQ, and arrived the day before the competition. I didn’t quite realise how far the walk would be to the university, or that it would be about 27 degrees at 8:30am. That meant that I turned up drenched in sweat after dodging bikes and cars, and a little bit confused about where things were. I think next time it would pay to check out the location the day before. I made it to the competitor briefing just in time, and ended up sitting on the floor while they explained how things would work. It all seemed pretty straightforward, except I thought we would get a warning 20 seconds before three minutes, but it turned out it was 30 seconds. That 10 seconds ended up to mean more than I thought it would.

There were 42 competitors from all over Australia and New Zealand, one competitor from Hong Kong and one from Fiji. Everyone was friendly, and no one seemed particularly nervous (or we all hid it well). Most of the presentations were on quantitative studies, and everyone did a good job linking them to the bigger picture. In some cases I think people might have taken it a bit far, with a few claiming to be in the process of curing cancer.

We were put into four groups of about 10 competitors, and there were four judges. Out of each group the judges chose two people to go through to a final eight, who would then present again in front of another set of judges. It took all morning to get through everyone, but the three minute format is great for keeping people on topic and interesting.

My group went second, and I was about the third person to go. I felt pretty good, although I had changed my presentation a few days beforehand and hadn’t quite practised it as much as I could have. My turn came along and I stood up. I felt more nerves than I expected, and I guess it was the competition thing. The delivery felt pretty good, but I got thrown near the end when the ‘30 seconds to go’ bell went. I’d been preparing for a 20 second alarm, and that 10 seconds made me freak out, but I hope no one noticed. After I was done I felt good, I’d done what I wanted to do, and now it was up to the judges.

Unfortunately I didn’t get into the top eight. But everyone was really good, and it was extremely difficult to separate people. A guy from Sydney won, he talked about brain waves and prediction. The prize was $5000, and I’m happy to say he spent some of that on drinks for the rest of us. We had a great night out in Brisbane, and it was great to be a part of the whole 3MT event.

3MT was actually only started at the UoQ in 2008. Although it’s pretty new, it’s taking off around the world as a great way to develop peoples’ presentation and communication skills. I’ve got a much better handle now on what I’m doing, and why you should care. It’s a prestigious event to be part of, and the level of skill is very high. They really take care of you during the competition. It’s a great thing to get involved in, and I’m sure the 2013 competition will be fierce. A big thanks to Annette, Rene and the rest of the AUT postgrad crew for all their support.

By Jesse Pirini

Jesse Pirini is a PhD student in the School of Communications, studying human agency, and how people express choice about their actions when diagnosed with heart disease. He also runs  www.pencilcase.co.nz, a high school tutoring organisation.