The Office of the Provost is sponsoring the Graduate Student Research Symposium for the second year, and invites graduate students to submit poster competition abstracts from October 1 to December 1. The four-part symposium, titled From Abstract to Contract (A2C), is designed to help students prepare to present their research in a formal setting at regional and national meetings and conferences, as well as prepare them to network with professionals in their field. The goal is to increase each student's probability of success in moving from research (abstract) to employment (contract.) The Office of the Vice Provost for Research and Economic Development, the Graduate School and the Career Development Center are jointly presenting the symposium.

Posters will be accepted in eight categories, spanning all fields of graduate study. Prizes will include $100 for first place in each category, plus a plaque and business cards for the winners.

For details on the symposium go to: http://career.uark.edu/template/students/Abstract2Contract.asp

The four symposium events include two workshops: "How to prepare a research poster," on Tuesday, Oct. 26 and "How to present a research poster," which will be held on Monday, Jan. 24. The poster competition will be held on Friday, Feb.11, and a workshop on how to network at a meeting or conference is scheduled for Wednesday, Feb. 23. An awards ceremony will also be held on Feb. 23.

In 2009 sixty-five graduate students displayed posters in the competition, and over 200 faculty, staff and students of the university visited the poster competition to view the research posters.