SOCORRO, N.M. – Registration will open for the 7th Annual Student Research Symposium at New Mexico Tech on Wednesday, Feb. 7.

The staff of the Skeen Library has taken the lead for this year’s event, which will be on Wednesday and Thursday, April 18 and 19.

All Tech students – graduates and undergraduates – are invited to participate by presenting posters, oral presentations, or three-minute speeches. Students can submit applications at the OSL , Skeen Library or by email at srs@nmt.edu. The registration form will be available online at  http://infohost.nmt.edu/~srs/forms.php..  The deadline for applications is 5 p.m. Wednesday, March 7.

"This year’s Student Research Symposium is shaping up to be an exciting event, joining efforts from many departments across campus,” said organizer Liz Lyons. "The SRS has always been excellent, and we are planning in close collaboration with several other departments to ensure that we continue to achieve excellence this year and moving forward."

The Symposium features some changes this year, most significantly relocating the 3 Minute Speech Competition to the CITL (Speare 113). The oral presentations will be from 6 to 8 p.m. Wednesday, April 18, in the Fidel Center ballrooms. The organizers are limiting this feature to eight talks. The event will be ticketed and include a dinner.

The three-minute speech competition will begin at 9:30 a.m. Thursday, April 19, in the CITL (Speare 113). The poster presentations will be from 11:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Thursday, April 19, in Macey Center.

Winners of the three-minute speech competition will receive the following prizes:

1st Place: Samsung Galaxy Tab A 8"; 16 GB Wifi Tablet SM-T350NZAAXAR

2nd Place: Sony XB950N1 Extra Bass Wireless Noise Canceling Headphones

3rd Place: 1 TB Portable External Hard Drive

The Student Research Symposium was launched in 2012 to give students new opportunities to present research and build a sense of community on campus. More than 500 people attend the event each year, with more than 100 students presenting more than 50 research and design projects. Beginning in 2014, all presenters have received a special honor cord signifying their participation in the SRS to be worn at commencement.

Guidelines and criteria for abstracts, oral presentations and posters are available at the Student Research Symposium’s website at http://infohost.nmt.edu/~srs/. The Writing and Oral Presentation Center will host the following workshops for presenters:

• Wednesday, Feb. 28 – Abstracts Workshop, 6 to 7:30 p.m. in Speare 113
• Wednesday, March 21 – Poster Workshop, 6 to 7:30 p.m. in Speare 113
• Thursday, March 22 – 3-Minute Speech Workshop, 6:30 to 8 p.m. in Speare 113
• Wednesday, March 28 – 3-Minute Speech Workshop, 6 to 7:30 p.m. in Speare 113

“The goal of the SRS is to provide students with a platform to present and discuss their research with an audience that is not necessarily in their field,” Lyons said. “’Communicate to Educate’ has long been the mission of the SRS. New Mexico Tech fosters excellence in scholarship and the SRS is just one way in which we can showcase it. I am looking forward to seeing what research will be presented from each of our academic departments.”

For more information, contact Lyons at liz.lyons@nmt.edu or visit the symposium’s website at http://infohost.nmt.edu/~srs/.