Elliott School Student Research Showcase

The Elliott School Student Research Showcase invites undergraduate and graduate researchers to take center stage. This premier poster session connects our scholars with ESIA’s unparalleled network of practitioners and faculty, providing a professional platform to sharpen presentation skills and spark meaningful dialogue on the global issues that matter most. We welcome all our students to participate.

  2026 Elliott School Student Research Showcase Timeline

• January 20 - March 20: Student Participant Application and Research Abstract Due

Submit Your Applications & Abstracts​​​  

• March 27 - Abstract Selections Announced
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• April 16 - Research Project Presentation Day. All selected students must participate in the presentation day to be considered for the prizes.
  • Date & Time: Thursday, April 16, from 3:30 pm to 5:00 pm
  • Location: Elliott School’s 2nd-floor Atrium | 1957 E St NW, Washington, DC 20052

2026 Elliott School Student Research Showcase Day Agenda

Each student selected to participate in the Elliott School Student Research Showcase will be eligible to receive a $500.00 cash prize. The awardees will be the students with the best presentations, strongest arguments, and solid research methodologies. This year, our faculty judges will award three (3) Elliott School students.   

Abstracts should reflect research or evidence-based projects that have been completed or partially completed, between 150-250 words, submitted as a Word doc. or PDF file, and include the following components:

1. Background & Significance of the Study
2. The Purpose of Your Research (which can consist of your research question or hypothesis)
3. Method
4. Preliminary Findings & Conclusions
5. The Implications of Your Findings and Revisiting the Significance of the Research

Please see below some important guidelines for your poster presentations

Poster size

We recommend the posters not be wider than 36” (3ft). The standard for poster presentations is 36” x 24” or  36” x 48” (width x height). The Research Showcase team will provide the tri-fold foam board, clips, tape, and easels to assemble your presentation space on the day of the research presentations.

Printing 

Presenters are responsible for arranging the printing of their posters. Below, we provided some printing resources for our participants:

• Free on-campus large format printing is available at Create Digital Studio (First Floor, Gelman Library)—use this link to submit your print. Prints are usually available within 48 hours.
• FedEx at 2020 K Street. You can send PDFs to usa1815fedex [dot] com (usa1815[at]fedex[dot]com), put “Poster, GW Elliott Student” in the subject line, and cc muhammadsulemanfedex [dot] com (muhammadsuleman[at]fedex[dot]com) for a special student discount. If you do the process online, you can use NDC# 0197197170 for a special discount. The typical turnaround is 24 hours.
• PosterNinja in Richmond, Virginia, provides unmounted (paper only) 3’x 2’ prints to campus in approximately three business days at $40. Shipping is $12.99 or free if you order over $50 (bundle a couple of posters).

Tips & templates 

You can use the link below to download poster examples and templates

Templates and Examples​

You will want to include all aspects of your abstract: introduction/background, purpose, methods, findings, conclusions, implications of your findings, and a revisit of the significance of the research for your poster.

Faculty Judges (Will be Announced Later)

Organizing Committee

Lily Carmel

Program Associate, Experiential Learning and Global Capstone

Christine Gilbert 

Associate Program Director, Research Initiatives

Sebastián Reyes 

Program Associate, Dean’s Operations

 

If you have any questions, please contact Sebastián Reyes at sreyes002gwu [dot] edu (sreyes002[at]gwu[dot]edu)

Best of Luck!