Jo Baker was announced as the winner of the national ‘Three Minute Thesis’ (3MT®) Judge’s Choice award for her presentation which describes her ongoing research into phonological awareness intervention.

A postgraduate research student from the School of Education, Communication and Language Sciences, Jo’s work focuses on the effects of phonological awareness intervention on the speech production of children with phonological disorder. This intervention boosts children’s awareness of the sounds and parts of words, and is crucial for language development and literacy, and helps with speech errors.

Jo is delighted with her success and commented:

“Condensing my PhD into just three minutes was not easy, the process pushed me to sharpen my communication skills and to think outside the box. It's been the perfect opportunity to focus on the impact of my research — which aims to promote positive change for young children with speech difficulties.

“I'm so grateful for everyone's support, particularly my supervisors Helen, Cristina and now Steph who I wouldn’t be here without!"

The 3MT® competition was developed by the University of Queensland in 2008 and has since grown to involve 900 universities across 85 countries. This year, Newcastle University hosted the institutional competition, which involved offering initial research engagement training, organising 1-1 coaching for finalists, and supporting winners through the regional competition. 

Rosalind Beaumont, Senior Lecturer in Education and Researcher Development, said:  "We are all thrilled for Jo, and the opportunities this award can bring for her at this stage in her academic career. 

“This competition is a great opportunity for postgraduate research students to explore ways of engaging a wider audience with their research and to develop valuable transferable skills in public engagement.” 

Rosalind also encouraged all PGR students across the University to enter the 2025 3MT® competition, and added:

“This year's institutional finalists and winners again highlighted the fascinating variety of topics being researched at Newcastle and the depth of talent in our postgraduate community.”

See Jo’s winning presentation here.