The Library

Poster Contest: Best Use of Literature

Biomedical Library's Fourth Annual “Best Use of Literature” Poster Prize

Poster exampleThe Biomedical Library’s “Best Use of Literature” poster prize will be awarded in January, 2013, in conjunction with the School of Medicine’s poster presentation event for the NIH Summer Scholars, students from the MSTAR program, and pharmacy students doing summer research.  This prize is awarded to two posters in recognition of outstanding use of resources and demonstrating that in a poster.  The award is $125.00 each*. 

All who wish to be considered for the prize are asked to submit a short essay reflecting on their research process.  The deadline for entry is noon on January 9, 2013.  Additionally, the posters will be judged to evaluate the use of references within the poster. 

Please send your essay to Karen Heskett at kheskett@ucsd.edu.  Please be sure to include your name and the title of your poster in the email message.

In your short essay (about 500-750 words, and no more than 750 words), please:

  1. Describe your research process including the resources or library services you used (databases, journals, books, interlibrary loan, other resources or services).
  2. Include a discussion of how you identified and selected quality resources.
  3. Reflect on how the information was synthesized into the research.
  • Tips  – some of the questions you might address in the essay:
    • What process did you use to find information and why?
    • What search strategy (or strategies) did you use?
    • Where did you start your research and where did it lead you?
    • Why did you select the resources you used?
    • How was the information you discovered pulled into your research?
    • What did you learn about searching for information that you didn’t know before?
    • What about the search process are you likely to use again in the future?

Note:  you do not need to answer all of the above questions.


In addition to the short essay, a panel of judges will evaluate the posters for:

  • The variety of resources selected.
  • Use of citations throughout the poster.
  • Consistent and complete citations in the reference list.

* Note: due to University rules, if you are in the payroll system, the maximum award we can give is $75.  Also, if the award is for the full $125, it is taxable.