MNRS Annual Student Poster Competition
The Midwest Nursing Research Society (MNRS) has a student poster competition as part of its annual research conference. The competition is open to University of Minnesota School of Nursing students (BSN seniors, MN, DNP and PhD). Up to twelve student finalists (i.e., three from each degree program) will be selected to represent the University of Minnesota School of Nursing at the conference's poster competition. Finalists receive recognition for their achievement along with financial support to cover some of the costs associated with participating in the conference (i.e., registration, MNRS membership, etc.) Note that while this is a poster competition, a STRONG abstract is ESSENTIAL*.
The MNRS poster competition is a three-stage process:
STAGE 1: UMN School of Nursing selection
A call for poster abstracts is distributed to all School of Nursing students in early September. Poster abstracts submitted to the Office of Nursing Research and Scholarship (ONRS) by midnight on Sunday, October 12 will be reviewed by selected reviewers. Up to twelve UMN Nursing student abstracts will be selected by reviewers to participate in the student poster competition. Those names will be forwarded to MNRS by the Associate Dean for Research. Students do not apply directly to MNRS for the student poster competition. The 12 selected students will present their posters at MNRS.
Link to submit an MNRS poster abstract
The 2026 poster abstract submission deadline is midnight on Sunday, October 12, 2025. Decisions will be announced in late October. Abstract guidance from MNRS is available along with answers to frequently asked questions (i.e., UMN School of Nursing MNRS student poster FAQ).
STAGE 2: Upload abstract to MNRS
The twelve selected School of Nursing student finalists upload their abstracts to the MNRS portal by 5 pm on November 11.
STAGE 3: Poster presentation at the MNRS
The selected student finalists have approximately four months to prepare their posters for the MNRS conference using the poster template provided by ONRS. Finalized posters are due to ONRS for printing in mid-March. Student finalists will then present their posters in-person at the MNRS Annual Research Conference (March 30-April 2, 2026) in St. Louis, Missouri. Finalists are also encouraged to present their poster in-person at the University of Minnesota Nursing Research Day (April 17, 2026).
*The MNRS student posters undergo three rounds of judging. Poster abstracts submitted to the MNRS portal in November are reviewed and scored before the conference. The finalists with the highest abstract judging scores will have their electronic posters judged online and their printed poster judged in-person at the conference. Again, a strong poster abstract is KEY first step to having your poster judged at the MNRS conference.
MNRS conference tip sheet
MNRS Annual Student Poster Competition (background)
