After five nerve wrecking preliminary rounds, ten finalists are ready to compete in the 3-Minute Thesis Grand Final of 2026. In other words, come and see ten PhD’ers who rank as the best scientific presenters from across campus! And, of course, cast your vote for the public’s choice award.
3-Minute Thesis
3MT is a competition for PhD students from any and all fields. In it, participants summarise their research projects into a concise, scientifically accurate and engaging three-minute presentation tailored for a non-specialist audience. Originating from the University of Queensland, this is the second time the University Library brings 3MT to Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam.
Programme
The Grand Final, which is hosted by Wouter Buursma, consists of the ten presentations by the finalists, time for the judges to select a winner and a runner-up as well as for the public to vote for the public’s choice award, and an award ceremony. The prizes, of €600, €400 and €300, are kindly gifted by Open Science VU, to support winners in their research. To celebrate, after a thrilling programme of 90 minutes, we close with drinks at Bar Boele.
Finalists
After five preliminary rounds, each putting forward two finalists, we now know that the ten finalists are:
- Julia Beets
“Small changes, Big consequences: Building life one brick at a time.”
Section Ecology & Evolution at Amsterdam Institute for Life and Environment (A-LIFE, Faculty of Science) - Eva J.E. de Bock
“Monthly torture: uncovering adenomyosis using microbubbles.”
Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology at Amsterdam Reproduction and Development Research Institute (Amsterdam UMC) - Timo van den Bogaard
“Too fatigued to handle the heat?”
Department of Human Movement Sciences (Faculty of Behavioural and Movement Sciences) - Joyce Burger
“Finding the Sweet Spot: How Task Difficulty Impacts Students’ Motivation During Physical Education.”
Department of Human Movement Sciences (Faculty of Behavioural and Movement Sciences) - Laurence Cleenewerk
“A better way to find new antibiotics.”
Department of Molecular Microbiology at Amsterdam Institute for Life and Environment (A-LIFE, Faculty of Science) - Lisette Dirksen
“Risky or at risk?”
Department of Criminology (Faculty of Law) - Sahar Fazli
“Sleep Your Way to a Straighter Spine.”
Department of Orthopaedic Surgery (Amsterdam UMC) - Niels Meijns
“The evolution of myelin damage in Multiple Sclerosis.”
Department of Anatomy and Neurosciences (Amsterdam UMC) - Francesco Persico
“The First Bonds That Shape Us.”
Department of Educational and Family studies (Faculty of Behavioural and Movement Sciences) - Gustė Stasevičiūtė
“Best Friends with Cows: Exploring Human-Animal Relationships in Industrial Farming.”
Department of Language, Literature and Communication (Faculty of Social Sciences and Humanities; Meertens Institute)