The primary aim of the challenge is to help master’s students communicate their thesis projects dynamically and concisely. 

Participants are judged on the quality of their presentation, as well as the accessibility of the narrative, communication skills, engagement, and comprehension.

Mr Wu, a Master of Applied Business student majoring in Business Analytics, won a $1,000 gift voucher with his three-minute address on Enhancing Academic Performance: A Machine Learning Approach to Predict and Raise Students' GPA. 

Super Mario to the rescue

Jeffrey had last-minute doubts about his presentation and its ability to resonate with the audience, so he incorporated a Super Mario-theme to help keep the three minutes light and easy to understand. 

“There were a lot of excellent presenters with fascinating topics in the competition, and I really enjoyed every presentation. I just didn’t think I would win,” he says.

“The night before the competition, I thought to myself, “Wait a minute, this whole presentation of mine sounds so unprofessional; why on earth did I choose this concept to begin with?” But it was already too late to change! 

“I took a big risk, and fortunately, it paid off. I consider myself very lucky.”

Mr Wu, who has a Bachelor of Science in Chemistry, says it’s been challenging to combine study and full-time work over the last four years, but he’s had fantastic support from everyone around him, including Student Success Director Annette Pitovao and his three frontline services teams.

“I’ve really enjoyed the Master of Applied Business programme,” he says. “Every course has been so incredible, and the teaching team just blows me away. They have made the learning so exciting and practical, giving me the drive to keep going semester after semester.  

“I’m particularly thankful to my Academic Programme Manager, Liz Rainsbury, who gave me the chance to prove myself when she allowed me to join the programme under the Special Admissions requirements.”

Jeffrey Wu’s master’s thesis is supervised by Dr Maojun Wang at AUT’s School of Computer and Mathematical Sciences.

There were two runners-up in this year’s challenge, both receiving a $500 gift voucher.
 
Master of Architecture (Professional) student Joseph Bjelic-Webster presented on Rethinking Stuff: Toward an Urban Bioregional Materiality (supervised by Min Hall and Kerry Francis), while Master of Applied Business student Christine Fusio delivered her three-minute thesis on Leadership styles driving career advancement of women in New Zealand’s Information and Communication technology (ICT) Sector, supervised by Dr Glenn Simmons.

This year’s entrants spanned a vast array of subjects, with presenters coming from five different programmes, including Masters of Applied Business, Masters of Architecture (Professional), Masters of Applied Practice (Social Practice), Masters of Applied Technologies (Computing) and Masters of Landscape Architecture.

“Always a highlight of the academic year, the 2024 Unitec 3MT didn’t let us down,” says Marcus Williams, Unitec’s Director Research and Enterprise, Tūāpapa Rangahau. “The topics are invariably from a place of passion and purpose - it’s a fascinating event.

“Our postgraduate programmes and their graduates make such an important contribution to our communities and economy in Aotearoa New Zealand because we really are very applied in our focus and therefore quite different to the University context.