University Research Week returns Oct 20-24, 2025, with the theme “UNC Research is North Carolina.” This year, UNC will highlight all the ways our research benefits our state.

Help us showcase how UNC-Chapel Hill’s research fuels North Carolina’s economy, supports businesses, meets community needs, trains the workforce, and cares for our citizens. Join us for a week packed with inspiring talks, interactive events, and opportunities to engage with Carolina’s thriving research community.

University Research Week is an annual, campus-wide event sponsored by the Office of the Vice Chancellor for Research and the Office for Undergraduate Research.

For a calendar of events, visit researchweek.unc.edu.

Hidden Gems: Lesser-Known, but Incredibly Useful Research Methods

This workshop introduces researchers to a wide range of lesser-known data collection and analysis methods – both qualitative and quantitative. Techniques explored include a set of projective techniques designed to dig deeper and elicit individuals’ beliefs, values and emotions. Moving beyond the individual, participants will next learn about unique methods developed to describe and understand social/cultural processes, and the interaction between individual beliefs/behaviors and the physical, social, and temporal contexts in which they are developed and expressed. Workshop participants will learn how to design and execute more than a dozen of these engaging methods, in both supplemental and stand-alone contexts. Workshop includes interactive components and hands on practice of concepts presented.

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Mastering communication is not easy, but it is one of the most valuable skills graduate students and postdocs can develop for sharing their research effectively. This Fall, the Office of Postdoctoral Affairs is offering a three-part virtual workshop series led by Danielle Hennis from Make it Memorable, focused on strengthening communication and presentation skills. Sessions will cover advanced PowerPoint techniques, the power of scientific storytelling, and effective data visualization strategies.

Each 1.5-hour workshop is highly practical and filled with tips and exercises that you can immediately apply to your own research presentations. Please note: sessions will be live and not recorded, so be sure to take advantage of them in real time.

As a bonus, a pre-series session - Deconstructing Presentations - is available as a limited-time recording through mid-October, providing a foundation on the psychology of audience memory. Learn more about the series and access the pre-series session at research.unc.edu/postdocs.

Discover how storytelling can elevate your scientific presentations in this engaging workshop. Science and stories both revolve around problem-solving, yet they often seem worlds apart. This session will explore the similarities between the two and demonstrate how storytelling can be used ethically and effectively in technical presentations. You’ll learn about common story structures, how to apply them to your research, and how to ideate and uncover the core message of your presentation. The workshop will also delve into using analogies and metaphors as alternatives to traditional stories, helping you connect with your audience on a deeper level. By the end, you’ll understand the power of storytelling and how to apply these principles to create compelling scientific presentations.

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