On March 4, 2025, Université Laval's Faculty of Graduate and Postdoctoral Studies (FESP) invited Agence PhDesign to host a hands-on workshop entitled " Best practices for an effective presentation. "
Part of the school's commitment to training the next generation of scientific communicators, the event brought together students of all ages and disciplines.
For 90 interactive minutes, Sophie Campion, Project Manager at PhDesign, shared tools and methodologies for transforming research results into clear, visual and powerful messages.
Université Laval wanted a practical intervention that would enable participants to define a precise communications objective, identify the expectations of their target audience, and then translate this message through appropriate channels.
Agence PhDesign also had to show how to design engaging visual aids (slides, simplified graphics or lightweight infographics) and provide the basis for a captivating scientific narrative.
The main challenge? To condense the essentials of scientific communication into just 90 minuteswhile leaving plenty of room for practice.
"My aim was to pass on concrete, immediately applicable basics. Scientific communication isn't just a skill, it's a lever to give scope to one's work. I wanted to encourage participants to ask themselves the right questions from the outset: who am I addressing, what is my objective, in what context am I communicating and how do I want to do it? Sophie Campion, Project Manager and Trainer, Agence PhDesign.
Conceived as a participatory experience, the session focused on an exchange around the challenges students often face when popularizing their work.
Sophie presented the main stages in preparing an effective scientific presentation:
A concrete demonstration illustrated the impact that overloaded graphics can have on comprehension, before showing how to simplify data visualization without losing scientific rigor. Throughout the session, the trainer emphasized the importance of graphic coherence, a clear visual hierarchy and a fluid narrative - essential elements of any successful visual communication training.
Practical exercises enabled participants to immediately apply the concepts covered, while encouraging mutual support within the group.
Examples include
- comparison between overloaded and simplified graphics ;
- demonstration of visual prioritization to maximize impact;
- collaborative application of the concepts presented.
At the end of the workshop, the mood was unanimously positive, with students declaring that they had acquired applicable knowledge for their future oral or visual communications. Exchanges at the end of the session provided an opportunity to delve more deeply into specific issues such as selecting data to highlight, prioritizing ideas and using visualization and planning tools.
Whether it's a one-and-a-half-hour workshop or a complete coaching program, the agency remains convinced that every discovery deserves communication commensurate with the effort it represents.
Curious to find out more? Contact us now.
If you don't want to miss any of the latest news about PhDesign and our projects, such as our collaboration with Laval University, sign up for our newsletter at the bottom of the page and follow us on LinkedIn.
1. Why is scientific communication essential for the scientific and research community? It enables research results to be valorized, complex concepts to be popularized, and academic and societal impact to be reinforced.
2. What skills are developed in a science communication workshop? Participants learn how to formulate a clear message, adapt their speech to their audience and create visually engaging material.
3. How long does it take to master scientific presentation? It all depends on experience, but a solid foundation can be acquired in just a few intensive workshops.
4. What is the impact of poor data visualization?An overly dense or poorly structured graph can lead to a complete misunderstanding of the scientific message, even if the results are excellent.
5. Where to find practical tools for scientific communication?Agence PhDesign offers tools, resources and training to improve your scientific communications.
6. How to train effectively in scientific communication?To benefit from training tailored to your needs, visit our website or write to us at: [email protected]
