Presentation Messaging & Structure for Scientists & Researchers
A short skills session to help your researchers plan and structure research presentations from the ground up
A focused 2-hour online workshop on the laying the foundations for an effective research presentation. Participants will learn how to analyse the audience, define their purpose and create an audience-focused message. Then, they’ll use that to create an outline of their presentation using our signature SimpleStructure presentation framework.
Scientists, researchers, students, and staff will learn transferable skills that they can apply immediately to conference talks, seminars, teaching, and research project presentations.
Approach: Interactive skill-bulding session, with examples, useful theory and frameworks, individual exercises, peer-sharing, and Q&A
Delivery: 2 hours online (Zoom or your preferred platform)
Group size: up 100 participants
What we cover in 2 hours:
- Define their audience clearly: who they are, what they know, what they need, and what motivates them
- Identify barriers to understanding: jargon, assumptions, complexity, and how to address them
- Craft a clear key message: the one thing the audience should remember
- Choose the right structure: simple frameworks matched to content and purpose
- Outline their presentation strategically: map content to structure before building slides
- Test and refine their approach: peer review exercises to strengthen messaging and flow
Practical work: Researchers will use their own research during exercises, preparing a draft presentation outline for a hypothetical presentation.
Interaction in this Skills Session is designed around guided individual exercises, chat-based reflection, and selected plenary discussion, rather than small-group coaching or personalised feedback.
What this session does NOT cover:
This session focuses on strategic planning and structure It doesn’t cover:
- Full presentation structure or messaging strategy
- Slide design principles or visual communication
- Delivery techniques, confidence, voice, or body language
- Advanced narrative structures
- Software tutorials or creating slides from scratch
- Dealing with questions
Need comprehensive presentation training?
We offer multi-day, 1-day, and half-day presentation training options.
Perfect for
- PhD programmes preparing students for conference presentations or thesis defenses
- Research groups and project teams developing grant presentations or stakeholder briefings
- Institutions supporting students and early-career researchers presenting to expert and non-expert audiences
- Doctoral schools building foundational communication planning skills
- Scientists, engineers, and researchers in R&D teams who use presentations to share research, report on programmes, and communicate progress.
This session works as standalone training or as a foundation before slide design or presentation delivery skills sessions.
Looking for related skills sessions or longer-format training?
Complement this session with SciComm Skills Sessions in:
- Scientific Slide Design
- Science Storytelling Foundations
- Flash Talks for Researchers
- Effective Use of Voice and Body Language for Presenting
Need more comprehensive presentation training? Our Presentation Skills Training for Scientists and Researchers covers all aspects across 1-2 days.
Explore all training topics
Not sure which format or topic you need? Browse our complete catalogue of communication training, organised by category.
Ready to plan a short skills session that focuses on best practices for scientific slide design?
We’d love to help you design the right training approach for your researchers or group.
This 2-hour session can be delivered as:
- A standalone workshop for your researchers, scientists, or staff
- Part of a doctoral training programme
- A mini-workshop or interactive session for a conference
- A component of a custom skills-building series
For more information, or to request a quote, get in touch.
