5 Tips for Making a University Presentation in PowerPoint
PowerPoint presentations are popular and widely used as a way to impart knowledge and train in the academic setting. Students and teachers alike use a university presentation or academic slideshow to demonstrate lessons as well as hone students’ different skills. Presentations are in fact an effective supplement to education; that is when done right. The problem, however, is that many of us already know how much of a pain it is to sit through a poorly made university presentation. And we must admit, there are a lot of these kinds of presentations. Here are 5 tips for making a University presentation.
Well-Made Presentations Benefit Teachers and Students Alike
For both students and teachers, a poorly made presentation can give them a great disservice. It doesn’t matter how much they know or how much effort they put into research. If they don’t have a good presentation deck to effectively deliver the information, then their message will be lost in the slides.
For teachers, they may find their teaching style ineffective. Their lessons may easily be forgotten amidst the dull slides. Students will come out of the class not having maximized their learning. Meanwhile, students who aren’t able to create effective presentations may not only get a low score in class. They may lose their big idea in all the fluff without enough focus and effective communication in the mix. So, without further ado, we’re giving you tips on how to make a stunning university presentation in PowerPoint.
1. Choose a Good Theme
If you want to have a stunning presentation, you have to choose a good theme. Free PowerPoint Templates (FPPT.com) provides free, flexible, high-quality templates and backgrounds that you can use for all your presentation needs. Being able to have this extensive resource can give you an advantage so that you can pick any theme that suits any presentation topic and easily put together a polished deck.
Having a well-made theme that is also cohesive with your topic will instantly wow your audience. It also lends more credibility to you as a presenter. Meanwhile, you will also become more confident about how your slides look and will perform better as you present.
2. Say More with Visuals
When creating a university presentation, just like any other presentation, you have to grab the attention of your audience. You have to keep them glued slide after slide. Droning on with long blocks of text on predictable slides is not going to cut it.
In fact, it really doesn’t make sense to put the whole text on the slide since you are supposed to explain the idea as you go over your deck. Keep in mind to use less text and instead use keywords. Then, supplement these with appropriate visuals. You may use images, graphics, charts, and graphs.
3. Sketch it Up
Today, PowerPoint has many new features to allow you to be more creative and to make the most of your time presenting. For one, you can use on-screen drawing to draw on your slides in real-time, as you are presenting. Simply click on CTRL+P to enable this function. This will help you encircle or underline important points in your slides for emphasis.
4. Make the Most of SmartArt
Proper use of SmartArt graphics can make your visuals more powerful. With just a few clicks, you can create schemes, workflows, diagrams, lists, and many more. These can help you visualize your story or data so you keep your deck concise. And since this can help visualize your information, your audience will have a better chance of understanding and remembering it.
5. Use Animations and Media Thoughtfully
If you must use animations, make sure they augment the message instead of distracting your audience from it. Usually, simple animations such as cuts and fades can cut it, but you may also use more complex ones to keep your audience engaged.
Meanwhile, sounds and videos may also be used, but be sure to only use them when it is highly relevant to your deck. Videos and audio must be powerful and brief, and should only support your core message. A long video clip, for example, may prove to be dull and therefore drive your audience’s attention away.
By following these 5 simple tips, you can transform your university presentation into something that is more professional and, of course, stunning and compelling.