SB3C Student Paper Competition

We are excited to announce the continuation of the SB³C Student Paper Competition at the PhD-, MS-, and BS-levels. This competition has become a SB³C tradition, a “conference within the conference”, and one of the yearly highlights for our community.

The SB³C2024 Student Paper Competition (referred henceforth as SPC) is divided into three educational levels (BS-, MS-, PhD-levels) and accepts abstracts from the following technical areas of the SB³C including but not limited to: Biotransport; Design, Dynamics, & Rehabilitation; Education; Fluid Mechanics; Education; Growth, Remodeling, and Morphogenesis; Tissue & Cellular Engineering; and Solid Mechanics.

Presentations for the BS- and MS-levels will follow the poster presentation formats of the conference, and presentations for the PhD-level will be podium talks.

Submission Deadlines: The SB³C Student Paper Competition has separate abstract deadlines than the regular abstract deadline. Specifically, the deadlines for abstract submission are:

• PhD-level: January 16, 2024
• MS-level: January 23, 2024 (general submission deadline).
• BS-level: February 20, 2024

Selection Criteria: The authors of the top-scoring 36 abstracts for the PhD-level will be invited to speak as SPC finalists in one of 6 podium sessions dedicated specifically for the SPC. Similarly, the authors of the top scored abstracts at the MS- and BS-levels will be accepted as SPC finalists for poster presentations in their respective competitions. To ensure fairness and to foster diversity of research topics, abstracts will be ranked based on their review scores independent of technical area. SPC abstracts not selected as finalists will be moved to the general abstract pool and considered for acceptance and presentation in non-SPC scientific podium or poster sessions.

New this year: Finalists may have their registration waived. This will be processed following selection using a special registration link. We ask that all candidates wait to register until after finalists for BS, MS, and PhD levels are selected. You will be notified at that time whether your registration will be waived.

SPC Presentations: At the 2024 SB³C meeting, teams of anonymous judges will evaluate SPC finalist’ performances delivering their presentations. Final scores in the competition are based on both the score of the original abstract and on the judges’ scores of each student’s presentation at the conference. The winner and runner-up awardees for each SPC group will be announced at the conference banquet. Prizes and certificates will be awarded at the banquet.

1. Eligible PhD-level students include those pursuing an MD, PhD, or an equivalent terminal degree. Students who have graduated in academic year 2023-24 with the corresponding degree are eligible to participate (i.e. Fall 2023, but not Summer 2023).
2. First place winners of BS-, MS-, and PhD-level competitions in previous SB³C meetings are not eligible to participate for the same competition level, i.e. a former PhD-level 1^st place winner cannot enter the PhD-competition again.
3. The student must be listed as both the first and presenting author. As such, the abstract content must be composed by work primarily completed by the student. Shared first co-authorship is not acceptable.
4. At least one co-author, generally the student’s research advisor, must be included in the author list. The advisor must also consent to the submission of the abstract for the competition and the student’s participation in the competition.
5. Only one entry per student (as first and presenting author) will be considered for the SPC. The same work cannot be submitted for consideration in any other session at the SB³C. It is possible for a student to be listed as a co-author on a separate submission. If they are listed on an additional submission as secondary author, both abstracts must be clearly distinct.
6. Only the student listed as the first and presenting author is eligible to present as the SPC finalist at the meeting. It is required that a submission to the SPC is in the spirit that, if accepted, the advisor, the research institution, and/or the student will make every effort to encourage and support the student’s attendance at the conference.
7. Important: PhD-level SPC are in-person podium presentations; whereas BS- and MS-level posters are in-person poster presentations. In the rare event where the SPC finalist is unable to participate, the finalist should contact the appropriate chair for their competition level (PhD-, MS-, BS-) as soon as possible.
8. The research project must have been conducted while the student was enrolled at the competition level (i.e. BS-, MS-, or PhD-levels). The content presented must include only work that was completed prior to graduation for the prescribed competition.
9. The work must be original (not previously published as a peer-review publication) prior to the submission deadline. A correspondence higher than 50% with a previously published paper will warrant disqualification (e.g. methods may be similar to previous work, but the results must be original and unpublished).
10. Students eligible to compete in the SPC at all levels are required to acknowledge all rules during the abstract submission process. BS- and MS-level submissions are also required to upload an attestation signed by the PI (template here). This BS- and MS-level attestation will be uploaded in the abstract submission website.
11. The abstract template must be strictly followed. Not complying with the abstract formatting guidelines may result in disqualification from the competition. For example, you cannot change font size, margins, or the starting location of the text on the first page.

Questions about the 2024 SB³C Student Paper Competition eligibility criteria may be submitted to the SPC Committee Chair, Megan Killian, PhD. (mlkillia@med.umich.edu)