Graduate Research Innovation Exchange

About GRIE

True to its name, the Graduate Research Innovation Exchange is a marketplace where students across disciplines get to know each other and share discoveries and new ideas. It is also a great way to get feedback on research in-progress—input that can help students prepare for sharing their work down the line through papers and presentations.

Student presenters also receive input from judges who will be evaluating posters for awards, as well as attendees who are able to vote for People's Choice Awards for their favorite presentations.

The best presentations by master's & PhD students, as determined by GRIE judges, will receive travel awards to present their research at conferences within their disciplines.

In 2024, more than 60 master's and PhD candidates shared their innovative and purposeful research with the WPI community.

See our list of current and past GRIE winners.

2025 Plans

The annual Graduate Research and Innovation Exchange (GRIE) and Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition to take place on Friday, February 21 from 1-5 PM in the Campus Center Odeum. Please find important information below about the event, including when/how to register.   

GRIE and 3MT 2024 Event Details:

When: February 21, 2024, from 1:00 – 5:00 PM in the Campus Center Odeum

What - GRIE: Graduate students present research posters to prospective PhD students, other graduate students, WPI faculty, and other WPI community members. Graduate Travel Awards & a People’s Choice awards given out.

What – 3MT: PhD students present a 3-minute presentation on their research using only a single static slide to an audience of prospective graduate students, other graduate students, WPI faculty, other WPI community members, and a panel of 3MT judges. Awards of $1,000, $500, and $250, will be provided to those selected as the Winner, Runner-up, and People’s Choice, respectively. 

3MT competition followed by GRIE, so that 3MT competitors will also get a chance to present a poster at GRIE, if of interest. This will also provide an opportunity for a GRIE presenters to attend the 3MT competition and vice versa.  

Registration: GRIE and 3MT registration is open now through Friday, January 17, 2025. Please note that there are a limited number of spots to compete in 3MT and GRIE, and registration is first come first served, so do plan to register early to ensure a spot. We will have a wait list available to those that register after we have filled the presenter spots for each competition. Beyond your basic contact and degree program information, we will be asking you to supply a placeholder presentation title for your GRIE and 3MT presentations as well as some key words about your research and 2-3 general sentences describing what you will be presenting on. Please consult with your research advisor about competing in either or both competitions prior to registering.  

To Prepare for Registration for GRIE or 3MT

1. First prepare a few keywords about your research to submit when registering
2. Prepare a 2-3 sentence, non-technical statement that describes what your poster and presentation will be about. No special characters are allowed.

Registration opens on December 10, 2024, return to this page for a registration link.

*GRIE organizers reserve the right to change the format and/or eliminate judging based on university status and pandemic considerations.

Sponsored by the Office of the Provost and the Office of Graduate Studies

Guidelines & Eligibility

• GRIE is open to all WPI PhD candidates, MS students engaged in thesis or similar research, or MS candidates completing a course- or program-related capstone project.
• 3MT is only available to PhD Candidates.
• Although presentations may have multiple authors, including the faculty advisor(s), there should be one lead author registered and presenting. The lead author MUST be the graduate student.
• Only one presentation will be accepted per student; it is the student’s responsibility to have his/her presentation poster printed for the event.
• Your presentation should clearly identify a project title, researchers involved, and department.
• Prepare your presentation to appeal to both experts and non-experts in your field. You must be able to clearly explain your research to a wide range of audiences.