Summer Poster Days

If you are a summer intern at NIH, Summer Poster Day is your chance to share your research and scientific ideas with a broad audience, while developing your networking and communication skills. We hope you have a meaningful experience sharing your research with the NIH community, colleagues, friends, and family members. 

The 2024 Summer Poster Days will take place on August 1 and 2, 2024.

All NIH summer interns are encouraged to present and attend this event.

This event is open to the NIH Intramural community and to the general public.

The Natcher Conference Center is Building 45 on the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Bethesda Campus, about five miles from Washington, DC. Check out NIH Visitor Information for instructions on how to navigate to campus and go through security.

The cafeteria in the Natcher Conference Center will be open for lunch from 11:30 am – 1:30 pm. You are also welcome to bring your own food and drink.

All summer interns are welcome to present.

You can share background information on your project, present data you may have collected, discuss any technical problems you might have encountered, and show results. You, like many of your summer intern peers, may have just started and unable to share a full story. We still encourage you to present - posters of all lengths of a story, or something else are welcome. Feel free to present a literature review or a completely new proposal.

Whatever your plan, be sure to discuss your idea with your supervisor or PI before registering.

Prepare your poster

Your poster should meet the guidelines outlined in our recommendations for creating a poster.

Watch a recording of our informational session on creating and presenting posters.

Print your poster

Discuss printing options with your PI/supervisor. Carefully consider your timeline for printing, accounting for feedback from your PI and other mentors or supervisors. In the weeks before Summer Poster Days, over a thousand posters need to be printed, which means printing services are going to be very busy. We strongly encourage trainees to submit appointment requests in advance regardless of which service source you are using. Note that some printing services might have a cut-off time to print posters.

Consider the following printing options:

• Your Institute or Center may have a poster printer you can use either for free or for a fee billable to your research group via a CAN.
• The Clinical Center Information Technology Center. Discuss with your PI before requesting this service.
• The NIH Medical Arts Branch (MAB) provides a service to print posters for a fee, billable to your research group via a CAN. Discuss with your PI before requesting this service.
  • Read the website carefully and follow the instructions. Some tips:
    • Ensure you have selected the correct size and layout for your poster (i.e. measurements (Width and Height) are adjusted)
    • Proofread your poster before submission. Ensure figures/diagrams, etc have the correct resolution and everything looks good.

Receiving feedback on your poster before the event can help you have a good experience when you present on Poster Day. You will receive feedback on your poster if you bring one to a poster feedback session. You will also be able to preview others’ posters and get some tips to improve your poster and presentation.

Session schedule:

• Wednesday, July 24, 2 - 4pm ET
• Thursday, July 25, 2 - 4pm ET
• Monday, July 29, 2 - 4pm ET
• Tuesday, July 30, 2 - 4pm ET

All sessions are virtual - Zoom links will be shared in an OITE SIP email.

We encourage you to practice with your research group, peers, and/or mentors.