Great Scientific Figures

Enhance the Clarity and Effectiveness of Your Charts, Diagrams, and Illustrations

For up to 16 doctoral and/or postdoctoral researchers*, in German or English

hybrid online training: video inputs & live online meetings

Trainer: Dr. Matthias Mayer

Learn what makes excellent scientific figures!

Whenever you communicate your research – be it in a publication, a poster, a conference talk – visuals play a crucial role. You will learn how to conceptualize, design and create visuals, that are immediately understandable and convey your message clearly.

Through the dynamic online learning format, comprising a 1-hour kickoff session and two 4-hour live online sessions, along with between-session videos and exercises, you'll immerse yourself in a wealth of examples and collaborate in small group sessions sharing feedback on your own figures and deepening your understanding and skills.

Goals

  • Understanding what makes a great scientific figure
  • Making good use of color, graphical elements, spatial layout, and fonts
  • Growing your technical & design-software skills
  • Streamlining your creation process

Content

  • Fundamentals of scientific visuals
  • When to use what type of visual? About charts, diagrams, illustrations, and more.
  • Essential tips to avoid common mistakes
  • Mastering layout, space, and grid
  • Harnessing the power of color effectively
  • Suggestions for improving your creation process
  • Discovering useful software tools for creation
  • In-depth discussions on your specific questions and examples

About the Course

After the kickoff meeting you will dive into the content watching short videos - at your own pace and schedule. In the two main live online meetings, we will discuss best practice examples and your own figures, you will receive feedback, and deepen your insights.

Your "Design Project(s)"
Prior to the course, you'll submit samples of your own existing visuals. These samples, which may be used as examples, will provide a starting point for discussion. During the course, you'll have the opportunity to rework one or more difficult to design own figures for upcoming publications or talks. Throughout this process, in the two main live meetings, you'll receive valuable feedback and guidance to improve and excel.

Your "Software Growth Project"
You are encouraged to consider a personal "software growth project" as a complementary journey, running in parallel, where you can actively enhance your proficiency in utilizing specific graphic design software of your preference. You'll receive a comprehensive introduction to various software options, along with a curated list of links to free, concise online tutorials. They will guide you through different software tools, enriching your skill set along the way.

Please note that this course focuses exclusively on the individual visuals themselves and does not cover the design of complete slides or the active presentation of the content. This training perfectly complements our highly regarded 2-day presentation skills training and our comprehensive webinar on slide design.

Join us for this enriching seminar and revolutionize your scientific visuals to leave a lasting impression on your audience.

Course Timeline & Overview

  • Before the course participants need to share their learning goals & own figures
  • Course start: brief kickoff meeting (1h, live online)
  • followed by 2-3 weeks of video inputs (about 10-30 min/day) & assignments
  • 4-hour online meeting: discussion of participants' figures, feedback in small groups
  • 2-3 weeks between meetings: further videos & assignments
  • 4-hour online meeting: further input & small group work. Course end.

Highly interactive - with during and after-seminar partnerships.
Total workload: About 2 days.

Methods

Understanding concepts and content using videos between the meetings. Deepening your understanding Through a dynamic online learning format, comprising a 1-hour kickoff session and two 4-hour live online sessions, along with between-session videos and exercises, you'll immerse yourself in a wealth of examples and collaborate in small group sessions, using and advancing your own material.

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