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What is 3MT®?

The 3MT® is a professional and highly engaging international competition that challenges PhD students to present their research in appropriate language to an intelligent but non-specialist audience in the space of three minutes.

The competition is based on the premise that the capacity to present a clear, concise and engaging description of their research is an essential skill that all graduate researchers should develop. It also brings our graduate research community together in a spirited and research-focused activity, inspiring them to share their findings with the wider community.

The idea for 3MT came about at a time when the state of Queensland was suffering severe drought. To conserve water, residents were encouraged to time their showers, and many people had a three minute egg timer fixed to the wall in their bathroom. The then Dean of the Graduate School, Emeritus Professor Alan Lawson, put two and two together and the idea for the 3MT competition was born.

The first 3MT competition was held at UQ in 2008 with 160 Higher Degree by Research candidates competing. In 2009 and 2010 the 3MT competition was promoted to other Australian and New Zealand universities and enthusiasm for the concept grew. Due to its adoption in numerous universities, a multi- national event was developed, and the Inaugural Trans- Tasman 3MT competition was held at UQ in 2010.

Since 2011 the popularity of the competition has increased and 3MT competitions are now held in over 900 universities across more than 85 countries worldwide.

In November 2013, the first Universitas 21 (U21) 3MT competition was held with several universities from around the world competing in a virtual competition.

2016 bought about an expansion of the Trans-Tasman 3MT competition to include universities from South-East and North Asia regions. The competition is now called the Asia-Pacific 3MT competition and is hosted annually by UQ.

In 2020 3MT moved to a temporary virtual format due to COVID-19 and has continued to be held around the word in either a virtual or live format (depending on local COVID-19 restrictions).

UiTM is the National level host for 2023 Virtual 3MT, with Universiti Kebangsaan Malaysia as a co-host.

The 2023 Virtual 3MT Competition will be held on July 5, 2023 and streamed live via the UiTM Youtube Channel.