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Thesis Winners

UNCW held the fall Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition on April 23rd. The Graduate School sponsored the event, and prizes were funded via the Dr. Ralph W. Brauer Fellowship. 

The 3MT is an international competition that began at the University of Queensland Australia in 2008 to help graduate students learn to talk succinctly about their research to a non-specialist audience. This competition is now held at over 900 universities in more than 85 countries worldwide. The graduate school hopes to make the 3MT a tradition at UNCW.

Sixteen graduate students competed in the competition.

Spring 2024 Winners

First Place

Kendra Devereux, Marine Science

 Dendrochronological and Foraminiferal Analyses on the Effects of Saltwater Intrusion on Bald Cypress Growth in Forested Freshwater Tidal Wetlands along Smith Creek, NC.

Kendra Devereux is in the final semester of her Marine Science Master’s Program and has successfully defended her thesis. Following graduation, Kendra plans to enter the environmental or conservation field where she hopes to incorporate a focus on outreach and scientific communication into her career. Besides science, she also loves to travel, hike, play tennis, and read!

Second Place

Taylor Kennedy, Psychology

Remediation of the Picture-Text Problem in Early Learners At Risk for Reading Failure.

Taylor Lewis (Kennedy), B.A.Ed, is a PhD student working in Behavior Analysis under the mentorship of Dr. Tom Cariveau. Her thesis investigates the picture-text problem in reading with elementary-aged students at risk for reading failure and explores a novel prompt type that may allow for pictures to be used in reading instruction in a way that does not inhibit word reading performance. Her interests are primarily in the identification of efficacious reading interventions for children with and without disabilities, as well as the advancement of stimulus control technologies.

Crowd Favorite

Megan Redmile, Psychology

 The Effects of Incentives and Message Framing on Physical Activity.

Megan Redmile is a second-year master's student in the Psychology Department working under the mentorship of Dr. Wendy Donlin Washington. Her thesis research examined gain and loss framing of incentives for physical activity. She is getting ready to start her internship in Greenville, NC and is looking forward to becoming a Board Certified Behavior Analyst

Previous Winners

Fall 2023

  • 1st place: Amy Grogan, Marine Biology
  • 2nd place: Prince Akonde, Geosciences
  • Crowd Favorite: Lauren Singleton, Psychology

Spring 2023

  • 1st place: Justin Van Heukelom, Psychology
  • 2nd place: Christian Sanders, Psychology
  • Crowd Favorite: Gina Carney, Geoscience

Fall 2022

  • 1st place tie: Lauren Olinger, Marine Biology & Hawken Hass, Psychology
  • Crowd Favorite: Tiffany Hoefler, Psychology