So, what makes a good poster?

• The best posters have high visual appeal, are easily read from a distance (Titles from about 10 feet, content from about 3-5 feet) and guide the reader through your work in a way that makes it easy for them to understand your research and its conclusions.
• Your title should be short but also catchy. That is, you want it to draw your audience in!
• Your overall word count should be no less than 300 words and no more than 800.
• Your content needs to be clear (i.e., easy for the audience to interpret without help, in case you're busy with someone else) and concise (stick to the point, so you get it across in the fewest possible words).
• Wherever possible use graphics, colour, font etc. to help guide your audience through the key information.
• Keep displays simple and text brief; your audience should be able to get the main points within 30 seconds. Your presentation will fill them in on the rest.
• Stay away from overly bright coloured boards. Neutral coloured boards are much more pleasing on the eye and will help ensure the content stands out more
• Bullets, numbering and headings will all help your audience to follow the presentation
• The layout should be clean and organized
• The poster must include acknowledgments, your name and the institution this project was affiliated with (So, in your case, the University of British Columbia Okanagan)

Additional Resources

Colby College page on Student Academic posters. We especially like the additional links in this one, including a nice video from University of Guelph.

Douglas College page on Student Research Presentations. This link has lots of really good resources, including poster templates, potential sources for creative commons-licenced images (which means you're allowed to use them) and more.