The Three Minute Thesis (3MT®) is an academic research communication competition developed by The University of Queensland (UQ), Australia. It is an exciting, fast-paced event that is held annually in more than 900 universities in 85 countries.

In a 3MT competition, doctoral candidates take up the challenge of sharing the story of their research with a general audience in under three minutes, supported by nothing more than a single, static slide.

All currently enrolled doctoral candidates are eligible to compete in the University of Auckland 3MT Competition. This includes doctoral candidates whose theses are under examination by the date of their first presentation. Learn more about how the competition works and how you can prepare for it.

The Open Heat is intended for eligible doctoral candidates who are based off-campus, or whose faculty is not holding a Faculty Heat (Law Faculty and Liggins Institute). Other candidates may apply to enter the Open Heat if they are unable to attend their Faculty Heat due to exceptional circumstances. While the Open Heat is held online, the winner is expected to attend the University of Auckland Final in-person. Learn more about how the competition works and how you can prepare for it.

Congratulations to 2024 University of Auckland 3MT winner Inka Pleiss (Faculty of Science), who has won first place in the prestigious Universitas 21 (U21) Global 3MT Competition for her presentation on the impact of climate change on New Zealand seabirds. Inka also reached the finals of the 2024 Virtual Asia-Pacific 3MT Competition.