16.1 Submitting an abstract

You must first thoroughly read the guidance notes given by the conference organisers. This will tell you what format your abstract must be in, the word limit (usually about 300 words), layout preferences, submission deadlines and your responsibilities as a presenter.

An abstract is a succinct description of your work. It is NOT:

A summary of the introduction – it is a summary of the whole piece of work.

An extract of your paper – it must stand alone and be able to be read independently.

Packed with references to other works – abstracts for conference submissions may contain a few key references only.

An empty outline of what you intend to present at the conference – it must contain all the important information about your work.

A good abstract will contain:

A good title – make it work for you. Set the scene and tell the reader what the abstract is about; it will tempt them to read on. Include key words but avoid abbreviations, jargon or ambiguous phrases.

The purpose of the research – why did you do the study? What were you investigating? Why is this work important? What are you adding to current knowledge? Make sure you state your research question clearly. A good opening is often ‘The purpose of this research is …’. Do not feel obliged to present all the findings from your study, especially if your study had several distinct objectives. Keep it simple and focus on one important area only.

The methodology used – briefly explain the key points of your methods. This should not be a major focus of your abstract but you do need to include the design, setting, who you included and what intervention you used (if any). Say specifically what was done and how you did it, avoiding generalised comments.

The results and conclusions – what did you find? What have you concluded? What, if any, recommendations can be made from these results? This is what most people are interested in so try to save most of your words for this section. It is acceptable in conference abstracts to include a table or a figure in this section and indeed this may be the best way to portray your results with the fewest words. Make sure you include the actual figures for your results not just the general trends.

A possible writing strategy is to write a concise and clear sentence for each of the bullet points listed above. Then count your words and see if you can add more. Use your extra words initially in the Results and Conclusions section, then in the Methodology. Next, edit and revise the abstract for clarity, making sure it flows together. Wait a day or two, come back to it with fresh eyes and edit again. Finally, ask a colleague who doesn’t know much about the research to read it. They should be able to understand the key message without asking for extra information from you. Revise it according to their comments and suggestions, repeating the final step several times if you need to! The most important thing to keep in mind is to make every word count.

16.2 Preparing a poster for a conference

Posters are used at conferences to enable people to briefly present their work in a concise and time saving way. Posters are a visual presentation of the information, using pictures, graphs, and schematic diagrams as much as possible. Try to show visually what you have done and use text as little as possible.

Posters may be exhibited for the whole conference or just on certain days. People are free to go round the poster areas at any time but there are usually set times when you will be expected to be with your poster to answer questions or talk through the work you have done. Some conferences also expect you to do a very short oral presentation, standing by your poster during a chaired poster round. Check your instructions carefully for what you will be expected to do and prepare accordingly.

16.2.1 Planning your poster

The instructions will tell you what space is available to you, when you need to put the poster up and take it down, and any other specific requirements like minimum text size. You have already written your abstract, so you will have the foundation of your poster. You can add extra information on the poster as you are likely to have more space than the abstract allowed. Nevertheless, keep your poster focussed and only add extra information when it links very closely to the abstract text. For example, you may be able to include slightly more detail about the methods of your study.

Look again at your abstract and decide what your core message is. What is the main finding you want your audience to take away when they read your poster? Next, consider who your audience will be and design your poster with this group in mind. For example:

Specialists only. You can assume a high level of knowledge about your area and safely use some jargon. Specialists in your field of study are likely to actively seek out your work and read it all. Your core message can be more detailed and specialised than for other groups. This situation is likely to be rare as most conferences cover a wide range of sub-specialisms.