Visualise Your Thesis

Summarise your research in a 60-second multimedia presentation

Visualise Your Thesis (VYT) is an international competition run by the University of Melbourne.

VYT gives Higher Degree by Research (HDR) students the opportunity to build essential digital communication skills to effectively communicate complex research to a general audience.

Learn more about VYT

Visit the University of Melbourne website

What's involved

Your task is to develop a 60-second presentation that encapsulates your research project using a supplied template. Competition submissions are judged on their visual impact and how well the content presents the research. The competition allows for multimedia, interactivity and interpretation and is suitable for all disciplines.

Preliminary rounds of VYT will be held within the University, with the best presentations progressing to the University of Sydney final. The first-place winner of the University of Sydney final will then compete at the international finals against winners from other universities.

The University supports competitors with a competition pack that includes training materials and guidance to help put together a winning entry. We will also have training and feedback sessions to help you develop research communications skills.

Eligibility

You are eligible to enter if you are a currently enrolled Higher Degree by Research candidate, at any stage of your candidature.

You are not eligible to enter the competition if:

  • you are an honours student
  • you are a masters by coursework student
  • you are a graduate researcher on a leave of absence
  • your candidature has lapsed.

If you're affiliated with a research institute that is also running a Visualise Your Thesis competition, you will have to decide whether you would like to represent the University or your research institute, as you can only enter once local competition per year.

Your entry should be original. The resubmission of previous entries is only permitted where the content has been substantially revised.

If you’re also employed by the University of Sydney, you are eligible to enter unless you have, or are perceived to have, influence over the competition outcome, research funding or related resourcing.

How to apply

Details of the application process for 2025 will be shared soon.

If you have any questions, please email vyt.admin@sydney.edu.au.

Judging rubric

Judges will determine a winner and a runner-up using the following judging criteria:

Category Criteria

Topic Understanding

Does the video leave you with a better understanding of the topic?
Communication and Language  Is the research communicated / presented in language appropriate for a non-specialist audience?
Creativity and Engagement  Is the video creative and engaging (e.g. visually striking and memorable)?
Topic Significance In the significance of the research clearly explained?

Past winners

A winner and a runner-up are selected by the judges. A viewer’s choice winner is also determined based on votes from University students and staff. 

The winning entry will represent the University of Sydney as a finalist at the International Visualise Your Thesis Competition.

  • Winner: Jennifer Grinham, Faculty of Arts and Social Sciences, ‘Data privacy issues, young people, and the use of Google Workspace for Education’
  • Runner-up: Kylie Southwell, Faculty of Medicine and Health, ‘Designing a cognitive communication treatment program for adolescents after a moderate-severe brain injury’
  • Viewers’ Choice: Deepu Ashok, Faculty of Engineering, ‘Tiny tech, big impact: The future of coronary heart disease diagnosis’

  • Winner and Viewers’ Choice Winner: Balsam Alkouz, Faculty of Engineering: ‘Swarm-Based Drone-as-a-Service (SDaaS) for Delivery.’
  • Runner-up: Erica Bell, Faculty of Medicine and Health: ‘Understanding Irritability: Definition, Measurement and Modelling.’

  • Winner: Daniel Surkalim, Faculty of Medicine and Health: 'Being Lonely Together: A Profile of Loneliness Across the Lifespan.'
  • Runner-up: Yuxiao Chen, Sydney School of Architecture, Design and Planning: 'The perfect concert hall: is it all about sound?'
  • Runner-up: Johnny Wong, Faculty of Science: 'How can we grow human stem cells more effectively?'

  • Winner: Anastasia Suraev, School of Psychology, Faculty of Science: ‘From prohibition to prescription: Cannabinoids as novel sleep aids.’
  • Runner-up: Ana Rita Barreiros, Westmead Clinical School, Faculty of Medicine and Health: ‘A comprehensive study of the effects of real-time functional MRI neurofeedback on treatment-resistant depression.’
  • Viewer’s Choice: Rachel Visontay, the Matilda Centre, Faculty of Medicine and Health: ‘To drink or not to drink: Does a little bit of alcohol cause good health?

Past entries

Past entries from the University of Sydney's VYT competition can be viewed on the Library website

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