Tell Your Thesis Story

Are you a GR interested in sharing your research with a wider audience?

Take part in Tell Your Thesis Story, an MDHS Faculty initiative combining a writing workshop and the opportunity to develop and submit a story based on your research, written for a lay audience.

How to participate

To take part in the Tell Your Thesis Story competition and writing workshop, complete and submit the Expression of Interest using this form, which includes:

  • Your details
  • A 150-word (± 10%) summary of your research written for a lay audience

Submit your Expression of Interest

Deadline: 23 June 2026

Key stages

  • Expression of Interest and 150-word summary submission. Submit a 150-word summary of your research.
  • Writing workshop facilitated by The University of Melbourne’s Pursuit. Participants attend a writing workshop to learn strategies for writing about research for lay audiences.
  • Thesis story development. Participants are invited to develop a full thesis story (~1000 words) based on their research.
  • Competition judging and prizes. Full thesis stories are reviewed by a judging panel, with the top 10 selected for online publication and prizes. The top three, as well as a Dean’s Choice award, will be announced in November 2026.

Frequently Asked Questions

General

  • Who can participate in Tell Your Thesis Story? Graduate research students (PhD and MPhil) in the Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry and Health Sciences at the University of Melbourne, who have passed confirmation and not yet submitted their thesis for examination.
  • What kind of writing is expected? Both the 150-word summary and the full, final thesis story should be written in an engaging and accessible style for a lay audience, rather than in academic style.

Thesis story summaries and Expressions of Interest

  • How long will the thesis story summary be? Summaries should be 150 words (±10%).
  • When are the Expression of Interest and summary due? Expressions of Interest including your 150-word thesis story summary are due by 23 June 2026.

Writing workshop

  • When and where will the workshop take place? The workshop will be held online in July 2026. Further details, including the Zoom link to join the workshop, will be made available to participants closer to the date.
  • Will the writing workshop be recorded? Yes, the writing workshop recording will be made available ONLY to GRs who submit an EOI and thesis story summary.

Full thesis stories

  • How long will the full thesis stories be? Full thesis stories should be 1000 words (±10%). The reference list (if included) is not counted in the word limit; however, in-text citations are included.
  • Can the full thesis story contain references? You may include citations and references if appropriate. Full thesis stories may include up to 30 references, which should be formatted in APA 7 style. The reference list is not included in the word count.
  • When are full thesis story submissions due? Mid-September 2026. Further details about final submissions will be made available to participants after the writing workshop.

Judging and prizes

  • How will full thesis story submissions be judged? A panel of judges from across MDHS, as well as a representative from the University of Melbourne’s Pursuit magazine, will assess submissions based on how clearly, accessibly, and engagingly they communicate a research story to a lay audience. Judges will consider:
    • Clarity
    • Accessibility
    • Engagement
  • What are the prizes? The top 10 thesis stories, together with a Dean’s Choice award, will be awarded prizes and published online.

Further information

This project is funded by a MDHS Graduate Research Development Grant and a MDHS Seed Education Innovation Grant