CBAS Scholars Day

CBAS Scholars Day 2026

CBAS Scholars Day is a day to celebrate all things CBAS during Scholars Week at MTSU!  The day will feature a poster competition with awards, a Departmental Expo, and raffle prizes!

The CBAS Day Poster Competition will be held in the lobby and atrium of the Science Building on March 24, 2026 from 10:30 am to 1:00 pm.  Students who would like to participate should submit a proposal using the link below no later than February 27th at 11:59 pm. Prizes will be awarded for the top poster presentations at the undergraduate, masters, and doctoral levels ($300 for 1st, $200 for 2nd, and $100 for 3rd).

Immediately after the Poster Competition from 1:00 pm to 2:00 pm we will have a Departmental Expo where the amazing CBAS departments will provide fun and engaging activities that represent who they are. Examples include chocolate milk, liquid nitrogen ice cream, drones, solar powered vehicles, and more! After the Departmental Expo, stick around for raffle prizes and the Poster Competition awards. Anyone who participates in the Poster Competition is automatically entered into the raffle. Raffle winners must be present to receive their prize. Individuals who win an award for best poster presentation do not need to be present.

Important Details!

• Students who wish to participate in CBAS Scholars Day and the University-Wide Poster Expo or events for other colleges will need to complete separate registrations for each event. 
• Participants will present during either Poster Session A (10:30 am to 11:45 am) or Poster Session B (11:45 am to 1:00 pm) and are free to explore the other posters when not presenting.

Participant Guidelines

• An abstract (300 words or less) is required for registration.
• Posters should be no more than 48 inches wide and 36 inches tall.
• Posters must be able to stand on top of a table on their own.  Participants must bring their own trifold board and clips to attach their poster to the board.
• To facilitate timely judging, poster presentations should be limited to 3-4 minutes with about 2 minutes for questions after.

Any questions can be directed to Dr. Kevin Bicker, CBAS Associate Dean for Research, at Kevin.Bicker@mtsu.edu. 

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2025 Award Winners

Division	Place	Name	Department/Program
Undergraduate	1st	Ariel Nicastro	Physics & Astronomy
Undergraduate	2nd	Tyler Baxley	Chemistry
Undergraduate	3rd	Ian Wilson	Biology
Masters	1st	Erin Scott	Agriculture
Masters	2nd	Savea Zimmerman-Cameron	Agriculture
Masters	3rd	Elizabeth Aina	Chemistry
Doctoral	1st	Derek Wiggins	Molecular Bioscience
Doctoral	2nd	Chris Bonnesen	Mathematics and Science Education
Doctoral	3rd	Dipesh Shrestha	Computational and Data Science