Photo of someone presenting a presentation

What makes a good proposal?

  • by Kayla Lee

Since the UC Tech 2024, Collaboration for Transformation, proposal online submission form is now available, we have compiled a list of best practices to help you create a stellar proposal that is engaging, effective, and exciting! 

Please review this page before you begin working on your proposal, and make sure to submit it by the extended deadline: 11:59 p.m. on Wednesday, May 8, 2024.

Click here to access the proposal submission form

 

Presentation Content & Detail 

  • Tell a story to support your topic. While data and theories are interesting, your audience will listen to and remember a story you tell better. 
  • Get straight to the point of what you want your audience to think about and remember. Omit information that is irrelevant to your topic. 
  • Present an overview of your topic with a few key takeaways rather than diving deep into your topic’s complexities. 
  • Simplify your data by only talking about patterns that your audience will be able to recognize. Too many patterns within the same data set will be confusing. Ask yourself, “how much does the audience need to know for this presentation?” 
  • Only share details that your audience will remember best for your presentation. Share all other details (e.g. charts, graphs, theories, links) in handouts. Remember that your presentation's purpose is to get your audience interested in learning more about your topic. 
  • Regularly remind your audience of how what they are seeing and hearing ties into your larger topic. For example, a 45-minute session should have at least two “stop and review” points. 
  • Be inclusive by showing how your presentation applies to varying audiences or explain why it only applies to one audience.  
  • Double-check the spelling on your presentation. 

 

Audience Engagement & Interaction 

  • Immediately engage your audience to obtain their full attention as soon as your presentation begins. 
  • Ask qualitative questions that are open-ended instead of quantitative questions that are closed-ended. 
  • Use short quizzes or polls to engage your audience. Other methods of engagement include icebreakers, show of hands, post-its idea walls, writing on a sheet of paper, talking to a neighbor, or playing a game on the phone. The goal is to give your audience intermittent breaks to digest and remember the information from your presentation. 
  • Give enough time for your audience to think before allowing responses during interactions. 

 

Consider Your Visuals 

  • Provide less information on your presentation slides to avoid overloading your audience and make your key points easy to grasp. The information on your slides is meant to support rather than restate what you are saying. They also act as cues for what to say. 
  • Avoid excessive bullet points to make your key points stand out. 
  • Choose a readable font to ensure accessibility and clarity for your audience. Sans serif fonts are commonly used. 
  • Enlarge your text to ensure readability from a distance and on a big screen. At the minimum, your font size should be 24 points. 
  • Avoid clashing color schemes when choosing the colors of your background and text. Think about high contrast to make your presentation easier to read. 
  • Let visuals fill the frame rather than putting them on the side of your presentation slide to ensure readability from a distance. 
  • Be unexpected by using visuals that get readers to think about its connection to what you are saying. Your visuals do not need to be exact representations of your content. 
  • Consider accessibility by verbally describing the information on visuals you are presenting and including alternative text descriptions. When using videos, ensure there are captions and audio descriptions. 
  • Reflect diversity of race, ethnicity, age, ability, and gender to be inclusive. 

 

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion 

  • Model your own identity by telling personal stories for your audience to resonate with and appreciate. 
  • Create an inviting, safe space for dialogue about differing experiences and ideas. Some ways you can do this include setting rules for interaction before a discussion, having your audience pair up to share ideas, asking your audience to pre-write a response before a group discussion, or asking to hear from those who have not spoken yet. 
  • Consider different learning support options such as having a few printed versions of your presentation. 
  • Be careful about making assumptions and stereotypes. Ask a colleague to review your materials before your presentation. 
  • Avoid gendered language when referring to your audience. Instead of “guys,” try “everyone” or “you all.” 

 

When you are ready to begin your proposal, head to the Present at UC Tech 2024 Annual Conference page for details about this year’s program tracks, presentation formats, additional considerations, and selection process. Applicants will be notified of proposal status in June.