Poster Guidelines

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ESC 2023 General Guidelines on Posters 

The poster presentation will be held on Wednesday, October 4, from 5:15 to 6:15 p.m.

The following guidelines address the expectations for posters presented. 

• Poster size 
  We will provide wall dividers that are approximately 25 feet wide by 6 feet high. Maximum poster size is 4 feet wide by 3 feet high and should not be mounted on foam board. Push pins will be provided. 

• Poster sessions 
  There will be one poster session lasting one hour. In addition, attendees will be encouraged to visit the posters during breaks. 

• Hanging and dismounting posters 
  Mount your posters in the Lincoln Room between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. on Wednesday, October 4. Take down the poster before 12:00 p.m. on Thursday, October 5. 

• Poster presentation 
  At least one presenter should be standing by your poster at all times during the one-hour poster session, ready to answer questions and discuss the work with conference attendees. 

Tips for Creating Good Posters 

The following are general suggestions for creating good posters, gathered from online sources and informed by best design practices. These are not requirements. 

Layout and Design 

• Make text size large and readable from at least 3 feet away. Body text should be 24-36 point; use 48-72-point text for headings. Text size within figures should also be large. 
• Use a serif font (e.g., Times) for most body text. Use a sans-serif font (e.g., Helvetica, Arial) for titles and headings to make them stand out. 
• Make the objective of your poster easy to find by using boldface or other techniques. 
• Use headings to cluster information and convey main points; this makes it easy to scan and find key information. 
• Keep the sequence well-ordered and obvious. Use a column format to help readers navigate your poster. 
• Your poster should have a good visual balance of figures and text separated by white space; this will also help define the flow of information. 
• Use a light-colored background and dark-colored lettering for contrast. 
• Use color sparingly. Color can be used to attract attention, organize, and emphasize certain content. Generally, two to three colors are sufficient. More colors may confuse viewers. 
• Use high-resolution images; low-resolution images will appear fuzzy, especially when printed on a large poster. 

Content 

• Provide a short, catchy, and understandable title to attract an audience to your poster. 
• Include the project researchers’ names and affiliations. 
• Include your university logo. Be sure to follow any rules or graphic standards that your university has for using the logo. 
• If your project is funded, acknowledge the funding agencies. Be sure to follow any rules or graphic standards that your funder may have. 
• Provide a brief and interesting summary of your research and state your main point(s) and conclusion(s) clearly and succinctly. 
• Sentences should be short and easy to read. Avoid long sentences. 
• Omit content that is not essential; details distract from the main point. If viewers want more information, they will ask. 
• Avoid jargon wherever possible and identify or define terms that may be unfamiliar to the audience. 
• Relate all visuals and text to the key points and conclusions. 
• Make sure you have proper permissions for use of images and illustrations and include the proper citations. Include your university’s copyright statement at the bottom of your poster. 
• Proofread several times for typos and grammatical errors.