Designing Effective Research Posters (DERP01)
Learn how to design clear, engaging research posters using effective layouts, data visualisation, and scientific communication principles.
Duration: 3 Days, 3 hours per day
Next Date: September 14-16, 2026
Format: Live Online Format
UK (GMT+1) local time - All sessions will be recorded and made available to ensure accessibility for attendees across different time zones."
£125Registration Fee
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- Overview
- Instructors
- Schedule
Course Description
What You’ll Learn
- Good understanding of Affinity design software
- Confidence in planning a design project, identifying key messages and audience
- Integration of data from multiple sources (eg R, Excel)
- Developing understanding of what constitutes good design and how to make effective choices using any design tool
- Meaningful progress toward a designed poster (or similar)
- Understanding the key principles of composition, colour, text and images and how to use these effectively in any design project
Course Format
Interactive Learning Format
Each day features a well-balanced combination of lectures and hands-on practical exercises, with dedicated time for discussing participants’ own data, time permitting.
Global Accessibility
All live sessions are recorded and made available on the same day, ensuring accessibility for participants across different time zones.
Collaborative Discussions
Open discussion sessions provide an opportunity for participants to explore specific research questions and engage with instructors and peers.
Comprehensive Course Materials
All materials used during the course will be shared with participants by the instructor.
Personalized Data Engagement
Participants are encouraged to bring their own materials, images, text, etc. for the work on your own poster session on the final day,
Post-Course Support
Participants will receive continued support via email for 7 days following the course, along with on-demand access to session recordings for 60 days.
Who Should Attend / Intended Audiences
This course is suitable for anyone who needs to communicate information via a poster or similar short, content-rich format such as a newsletter. The course includes time for participants to work on their own project, however it is not essential to have a project in progress.
Equipment and Software requirements
A laptop or desktop computer with a functioning installation of Affinity by Canva. Affinity by Canva is free and is available for Mac and Windows.
A working webcam is recommended to support interactive elements of the course. We encourage participants to keep their cameras on during live Zoom sessions to foster a more engaging and collaborative environment.
While not essential, using a large monitor – or ideally a dual-monitor setup – can significantly enhance your learning experience by allowing you to view course materials and work in R simultaneously.
Dr. Martin Jones
Martin is a freelance trainer specialising in programming and Linux skills tailored for researchers in biological sciences. With a background in biology and a PhD in large-scale phylogenetics, Martin combines deep scientific expertise with practical computational training to empower researchers to leverage coding and open-source tools in their work.
His teaching primarily focuses on Python programming and Linux, with an emphasis on applications relevant to biological data analysis. Since launching Python for Biologists in 2015, Martin has dedicated himself full-time to teaching and writing, helping bridge the gap between biology and computational skills.
Education & Career
• PhD in Large-Scale Phylogenetics, 2007
• Former Lecturer in Bioinformatics, University of Edinburgh
• Founder of Python for Biologists (2015–present)
• Over a decade of experience training biologists in programming and Linux
Training & Skills
Martin specialises in:
• Python programming for biological research
• Linux command line and scripting
• Bioinformatics workflows and reproducible research practices
Professional Focus
Martin’s work focuses on equipping life scientists with the computational tools necessary to analyse complex biological datasets. He advocates for practical, hands-on training that helps researchers automate tasks, perform reproducible analyses, and develop programming confidence.
Teaching & Writing
• Full-time educator and author on programming for biologists
• Creator of tutorials, workshops, and online courses in Python and Linux
• Active in the bioinformatics and computational biology training community
Links
• Python for Biologists
Session 1 – 03:00:00 – Key Principles of Good Design
The first session enables participants to develop a thorough understanding of the key principles of good design by putting these into practice in a series of follow-along activities using Affinity design software.
Session 2 – 03:00:00 – Design Elements of Posters
Session two builds on these skills to look at design elements of posters in particular, including composition and typography. Participants will also develop more skills for planning a design project, identifying audiences and messaging, making informed decisions about what and how to communicate with graphics.
Session 3 – 03:00:00 – Work on your own poster (or other short content-rich document such as a newsletter or policy briefing).
Session three gives participants the opportunity to further develop and implement these skills by working on their own poster (or other short content-rich document such as a newsletter or policy briefing). Throughout the session, the trainer will support participants with their individual requirements.
Testimonials
PR Stats offers a great lineup of courses on statistical and analytical methods that are super relevant for ecologists and biologists. My lab and I have taken several of their courses—like Bayesian mixing models, time series analysis, and machine/deep learning—and we've found them very informative and directly useful for our work. I often recommend PR Stats to my students and colleagues as a great way to brush up on or learn new R-based statistical skills.
Rolando O. Santos
PhD Assistant Professor, Florida International University
Courses attended
SIMM05, IMDL03, ITSA02, GEEE01 and MOVE07
Testimonials
PR Stats provided excellent training in stable isotope analysis through the SIMMPR course, which was incredibly valuable for my research. I was fortunate to attend the course through a generous fee waiver, which directly supported my work and enabled me to develop skills that contributed to my recent publication on reservoir food webs in Sri Lanka. I’m very grateful for the opportunity and support, and would highly recommend their courses to others working in ecological research.
Subodha Silva
Aquatic Ecology Researcher
Courses attended
SIMMPR
Testimonials
PR Stats has become an invaluable part of developing my skills in advanced statistical and spatial analysis. Through training in areas such as Bayesian statistics and Species Distribution Modelling, I’ve gained both practical expertise and exposure to leading experts in the field. The impact on my research has been significant with at least four of my published papers have been directly influenced by PR Stats courses. My most recent work benefitted from modelling advice on sample design and model accuracy evaluation and can be seen here.
Carlos P.E. Bedson
Quantitative Spatial Ecology, Ecology and Environment Research Centre, Manchester Metropolitan University, United Kingdom
Courses attended
ADVR08, ENMR03, BMIN02, ISBD01, BADA01, SDMB06
Frequently asked questions
Everything you need to know about the product and billing.
When will I receive instructions on how to join?
You’ll receive an email on the Friday before the course begins, with full instructions on how to join via Zoom. Please ensure you have Zoom installed in advance.
Do I need administrator rights on my computer?
I’m attending the course live — will I also get access to the session recordings?
I can’t attend every live session — can I join some sessions live and catch up on others later?
I’m in a different time zone and plan to follow the course via recordings. When will these be available?
I can’t attend live — how can I ask questions?
Will I receive a certificate?
When will I receive instructions on how to join?
You’ll receive an email on the Friday before the course begins, with full instructions on how to join via Zoom. Please ensure you have Zoom installed in advance.
Do I need administrator rights on my computer?
I’m attending the course live — will I also get access to the session recordings?
I can’t attend every live session — can I join some sessions live and catch up on others later?
I’m in a different time zone and plan to follow the course via recordings. When will these be available?
I can’t attend live — how can I ask questions?
Will I receive a certificate?
Still have questions?
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