Deadline for Entry Application for the Poster Competition: Monday, October 12, 2026

Deadline for Emailed Poster PDF: Friday, October 16, 2026

Email attached PDF to Dr. Stephen Perkins: stephen.perkins@okstate.edu

 

PAS Guidelines for Undergraduate or Graduate Student Poster Competition

PAS encourages all undergraduate and graduate students to present a poster or paper at the society's annual conference regardless of whether they choose to enter the competition described here. Even if student-faculty, or student-professional collaborations do not meet the guidelines outlined below, presenting a conference paper or poster remains an excellent opportunity for students to more fully participate in a professional gathering, and to interact with, learn from, and receive feedback from peers and professionals.

 

NEW THIS YEAR (2026)

Preconference Poster Submission Required: A pre-conference legal-sized PDF (8 1/2 x 11") of each participant's poster shall be emailed to the poster competition organizer(s) the week prior to the conference. This will provide judges with a better understanding of the content of each presentation prior to the competition.

 

Poster Competition Guidelines

  1. Student Sole Authored Posters: The author of a poster must be enrolled as a full or part-time graduate or undergraduate student.

     

  2. Student Co-Authored Posters: The student co-authors of a poster must be enrolled as full or part-time graduate or undergraduate students. Student co-authors should be prepared to discuss each author's role in the research and creation of the poster presentation. If co-authors involve graduates and undergraduates, the authors shall decide whether to enter the graduate or undergraduate competition, but not both. The lead author and presenter must align with the competition chosen: Undergraduate Poster Competition must have an undergraduate student as lead author and presenter; Graduate Poster Competition must have a graduate student as lead author and presenter.

     

  3. Student and Professional Co-Authored Posters: Where professional contributions by non-student research partners (i.e., advisors, project directors, professional collaborators) necessitate co-authorship, the professional co-author shall be listed as secondary co-authors (junior co-authors). Non-student secondary co-authors are prohibited from presenting or assisting in the oral presentation of papers or posters in the student competition. In addition to the written form, poster competition judges may inquire further about the respective contributions of both the student and professional in the research and creation of the poster. 

     

  4. Violations and Poster Rankings: It is up to the judges' discretion whether a violation regarding the rules of collaboration has occurred. In such instances, judges may disqualify a poster presentation or take the violation into account in their final ranking of the posters. The judges' decisions regarding violations and final rankings are final.

     

  5. Judging: Judges shall have the final say in disqualifying any poster entered in the competition that does not conform to the policies listed above. The judges' decisions regarding disqualifications and winners of the poster competitions are final. If potential judges have a conflict of interest in judging one or more posters, they should recuse themselves from the entire competition.

 

Rubric Used by Judges to Evaluate Posters

 

  1. Application Form: To ensure that the student competitor is the primary contributor to the poster, PAS requires that a form be submitted describing the role of each contributor in the finished paper or poster. The statement shall accompany the final submission of the poster as part of entering the competition. If the statement is not submitted or the competition judges determine, based on the statement, that a student has not contributed significantly to the final product, the associated poster will not be considered for the student competition. In such cases, the co-authors of the poster will be encouraged to participate in a PAS conference session rather than the student competition.

 

Student Poster Competition Application

 

See past Recipients of the Student Poster Award