Empower
Your Pitch
Welcome to Empower Your Pitch!
This is your chance to showcase your research in a whole new way. Designed by the Doctoral Life Design Studio for all JHU doctoral students and Postdocs, this exciting competition celebrates the art of blending scholarship and communication!
Take your complex research and turn it
into a powerful, three-minute
presentation that connects with a
diverse audience. Speak, sing, rap, or use digital
media—however you choose to
tell your story, the stage is yours.
New in 2025… Empower Your Pitch for Postdocs!
We’re excited to introduce a new addition to Empower Your Pitch: the Postdoc Contest!
Exclusively for JHU postdoctoral fellows, this category provides a platform to showcase your research, creativity, and communication skills. Present your work in a dynamic three-minute format designed to captivate a broad audience.
Whether you’re honing your presentation style, sharing innovative discoveries, or competing for recognition, this is your chance to stand out. Don’t miss the opportunity to be part of this exciting expansion of Empower Your Pitch!
Eligibility
Empower Your Pitch welcomes all doctoral & postdoctoral scholars from the Johns Hopkins community, irrespective of their stage in the research journey. If you’ve previously graced our stage, we’re delighted to inform you that previous participants in the Empower Your Pitch competition are eligible to return and inspire us once more with their innovative research narratives.
Contest Rounds
Round 1: Try Out Your Ideas
This is your chance to experiment and explore! In the first stage, you’ll share your initial pitch delivered in 3 minutes or less and get constructive feedback from a supportive panel of coaches & judges. It’s all about testing your ideas and finding what works—no pressure, and no eliminations. To include participants from everywhere, Round 1 will be held virtually, welcoming voices from JHU scholars across the world!
Round 2: Refining Your Pitch
The second round narrows the field as select participants are selected as finalists. This is where you take your pitch to the next level, sharpening your message and preparing for the spotlight. Like Round 1, this stage is also virtual, keeping the doors open to research narratives from every corner of the world.
Round 3: Shine On Stage
The grand finale is your time to dazzle. In front of a live audience and a panel of judges—experts in research communication and from various industries—you’ll present your polished pitch. The judges will select three winners. JHU winners (Doctoral Scholars only) will represent JHU at an Inter-University Contest at the University of Texas, Austin this Summer!
EMPOWER YOUR PITCH 2025
For Docs & Postdocs
Awards
Our contest celebrates the diversity of effective communication, with three unique awards that honor excellence in different aspects of research storytelling. Each winner receives a $1,000 cash prize
- Overall Excellence in Research Communication
- Outstanding Public Engagement Through Research Communication
- Outstanding Creativity in Research Communication
2025 Contest
Schedule
TUESDAY
March 4
Postdoctoral Scholar,
Virtual Round 1
THURSDAY
March 27
Postdoctoral Scholar,
Virtual Round 2
TUESDAY
April 8
Postdoctoral Scholar,
Grand Finale
WEDNESDAY
Feb 26
Doctoral Student,
Virtual Round 1
WEDNESDAY
March 19
Doctoral Student,
Virtual Round 2
TUESDAY
April 8
Doctoral Student,
Grand Finale
What Participants Say?
“Participating in the EYP competition has reinvigorated my passion for research and empowered me to unleash my full potential. It gave me a unique opportunity to showcase my research pitch in an engaging, creative, and educational way. It is such a pleasure to learn about impactful research across diverse fields and make friends with fellow graduate students”
“Until this year, I had only presented my graduate work within a very tight community of fellow neuroscientists. EYP changed that by providing a fun and unique platform for me to share my research findings with a broader audience. Through feedback over multiple rounds, I grew in my communication skills and became a more confident speaker. “
“I had an amazing time at EYP and felt that the competition both enhanced my communication skills and supported my broader career goals. I benefited from hearing about the incredible work being done by graduate students around the country and from the challenge of distilling my research into discrete points that could be understood by a general audience.”