QESymposium

Poster presentation guidance

(Thanks to Cochrane from where we have adapted the guidance below).

Poster content

The Symposium discussions will focus on using qualitative evidence to inform decisions in the SDG era. In preparing your presentation, please ensure that you cover the following issues:
- How the study, tool or process described relates to decision making for the SDGs
- How the qualitative evidence described fed into a decision process or how the tool/s or process that you described support the use of qualitative evidence in decision making
- [Where relevant ] The impacts of the qualitative evidence or tool/s on the decision process

Poster sessions

You will receive instructions on where to hang your poster when you arrive.
Please stand next to your poster during the coffee and lunch breaks so that other participants have an opportunity to discuss your findings with you

Poster dimensions

The size of the poster should be A0 – 84.1cm (width) x 118.9cm (length) or 33.11 inches (width) x 46.81 inches (length).
The posters must be displayed in PORTRAIT format (NOT landscape).
Please do not exceed these dimensions. You will not be able to hang your poster if it does not fall within size limits.

Poster printing and transport

Posters MUST be printed prior to the event. Please bring your poster with you (as a hard copy) to the Symposium.
There will be NO printing facilities available at the Symposium venue.

Design restrictions

All text should be in English, Portuguese or Spanish
Please ensure you create posters that are as professional and visually appealing as possible, and that you use a font size that can be read from 1.5m away from the poster.
Please also check whether your organization provides poster templates and has any brand guidelines that should be followed.

Preparing for the Symposium

Information on how to upload your poster to the Symposium online platform will be sent to you later

Mounting and dismounting

As the presenter, you are responsible for hanging and removing your posters during the Symposium.
Posters should be attached to the poster boards with double sided tape or prestick only, which will be provided to you at the venue.
Poster that are not collected by the end of the final day of the Symposium will be discarded.

Flyers and hand-outs

Please bring A4 copies of your poster with you to share with interested delegates.
We will not provide envelopes or sticky tape to hang up your A4 copies – please bring these with you.

Questions to ask yourself before finalizing your poster

General impression	Is this poster understandable to your colleagues without any verbal comment?
	Does this poster provide a clear flow of information from introduction to conclusion?
	Is the flow of information clear from the layout?
	Does this poster focus on major findings (few key messages)?
	A common fault is to try to cover too much in a poster. Does this poster lead you quickly to the point?
Other aspects you may like to think about (content, word count, idea flow, figure clarity, font size, spelling, etc):	Are the title and author’s name of this poster prominent and eye-catching?
	Do visuals used in this poster help you to understand the main messages this poster wants to deliver?
	Are the visuals clear?
	Are the key messages highlighted? (e.g., use boxes to isolate and emphasise specific points)
	Are the key messages organized in form of short, simple and separate statements (e.g., bullet points)?
	Does the poster use a clear font with large inner space (i.e. the space inside the loops of letters such as ‘o’, ‘d’, ‘p’)? Good examples are Arial, Verdana, Georgia or Helvetica.
	Does this poster keep the word count as low as possible?
	Is the text in the body of the poster big enough to be read from 1.8-3 meters away?
Thinking creatively	Is there anything that you would change in order for this poster to look different from other posters?

Acknowledgements and useful references:

Erren T.C., Bourne P.E. (2007) Ten Simple Rules for a Good Poster Presentation. PLoS Comput Biol 3(5): e102. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pcbi.0030102