What is an academic poster?

At university, you will write numerous essays. Perhaps you’ve done a few already and you’re familiar with the format of essay writing; they require a beginning, middle and an end, they are made up of a series of paragraphs which read in a logical order across many pages to communicate your research and build a discussion around a topic. 

Posters are very different. They are designed to capture a passer-by’s attention and deliver its message on a single page in a brief and concise manner. The main differences between an essay and a poster are highlighted in the infographic below. 

Where an essay communicates information in linear sequence from the first word and first page to the last word and page, a poster is explored and investigated by the viewer to learn more. For example, when you observe an object you should know right away what it is and the more you look, the more you learn from it. A poster should do the same thing. 

Academic posters are a representation of your work, communicated through text, visual imagery, infographics and/or tables and graphs to summarise your project and its conclusions. Information is laid out in sections, using headings and subheadings to draw the attention and eyeline of the viewer. Here is an example of what an academic poster could look like: 

Unlike an essay, there is no standard format to an academic poster and therefore you have the freedom to play with colour, composition and the style in which you’d like to display your information. Later on, we’ll look at how you can make these decisions to find the best visual design for your project.