"Imagine you have submitted an abstract to a meeting or conference & to your amazement it has been accepted as a poster presentation. If you have never done this before then read the top tips below from Jo Crofts - she make's it sound so straight forward" Dr Dina Bisson, Head of School. TIPS ON HOW TO PREPARE A POSTER Jo Crofts ST 5 - September 2009 Tip 1: Read & follow the instructions from the conference organisers - if it states the poster should be a certain size, shape or format it needs to be printed in that form - even if you don't agree! Tip 2: The Title, Authors & text of your poster should reflect your submitted abstract. Tip 3: Keep to same, easy to read fonts - Arial is probably the clearest. Tip 4: Sadly a poster for a conference is designed to be a showcase for your academic work & not a demonstration of your GCSE Art Skills - keep to simple colours & avoid complicated picture backgrounds which will distract the reader. Tip 5: PowerPoint is probable the easiest programme to use to design your Poster. Tip 6: To make the slide the appropriate size for your poster in PowerPoint - go to File, Page Set up, Choose 'custom' in the 'slides sized for' box then enter the size requirements for your poster. Tip 7: Insert text boxes to divide up the segments of your work eg: Background, Methods, Results, Discussion & References. Tip 8: Text boxes can be filled & outlined in colour. Experiment with different thickness of borders & different colours. Pictures look more professional if they are also bordered in the same colour as the text (Format Picture - Colours & Lines). Tip 9: Take care if you are inserting pictures that they will not become Pixelated when the poster is printed full size. If in doubt use the highest resolution possible for all your pictures & ask the printing department to check your pictures before the poster is printed. Do not compress your pictures to decrease your file size so your PowerPoint is small enough to be emailed to the Printers. Tip 10: To ensure there is equal spacing between your text boxes & that you have achieved vertical & horizontal alignment of text boxes & pictures overlay gridlines (even a small misalignment will look obvious when your poster is printed full size) - Choose View - Grids & Guides & tick 'display Grid & Guide'. Tip 11: Contact the poster printing department in your Trust early. Find out what format they need the poster in & how long it will take them to print it for you. Tip 12: Posters are usually printed by the Medical Photography Department or Printing Services - if you don't know ask a colleague or switchboard!! Tip 13: Always get someone else to proof read your work BEFORE you send it to be printed. Tip 14: Most conferences will provide you with a method to stick the poster to the display wall. Tip 15: Remember to stand next to your poster at the allocated times. The poster judges will be visiting & may wish to ask you questions about your work. Look enthusiastic & knowledgeable. Tip 16: Most of the marks for a poster are given for the content, not for the amazing use of pictures, so ensure the content is well written, concise & there are no spelling mistakes!! Below is a link to a poster in Powerpoint with the grid & guidelines displayed. You will probably look at it & think it looks full as there are no fancy backgrounds or bright colours - however - it did win a Prize at an International RCOG conference - so it must have been going something right!