Develop Your Research Elevator Pitch

This exercise is designed to give you a starting point for developing your elevator pitch, using these three questions:

• What problem are you trying to solve?
• How are you trying to solve it?
• What impact will your research have on the problem?

For each question:

1. Write a broad, big picture answer. (1 sentence)
2. Write a more detailed answer. (1-2 paragraphs)
3. Write a version that meets somewhere in the middle. (2-3 sentences)

Below are potential components you might include in your pitch. Depending on your audience and goals, you may not need to include all of these components for an effective pitch.

1. Introduction

• Connect with the Audience: Start by making a connection between you and your audience, such as shared interests, challenges, or goals.
• Engage with a Hook: Start with a compelling hook that grabs the audience’s attention. This could be a surprising fact, a provocative question, or a brief anecdote related to your research.

2. Problem Statement

• Identify the Issue: Clearly define the problem your research addresses.
• Contextualize the Issue: Provide context to help your audience understand why the problem matters. Consider using statistics or a brief anecdote to illustrate the problem's scope.

3. Research Focus and Significance

• Describe Your Research: Explain what your research is and how it addresses the problem.
• Highlight the Significance: Explain why your research is meaningful and relevant to the audience.
• Contextualize Your Research: Describe how your research fits into the broader context of your field—for example, how it builds on or challenges existing work—and why it matters in the current landscape.

4. Methodology and Key Findings

• Describe Your Approach: Briefly outline the methods or approaches you are using.
• Highlight Innovation: Mention any unique or innovative aspects of your research.
• Present Key Findings: Summarize the key findings or expected outcomes of your research.

5. Impact

• Highlight Potential Benefits: Discuss the potential positive outcomes of your research.
• Highlight Broader Implications: Mention any broader implications or long-term goals that your research could contribute to.

6. Conclusion

• Invite a Conversation: End with an open-ended question that invites the audience to share their thoughts, experiences, or ideas.
• Include a Call to Action: If applicable, end with a clear call to action that invites further engagement.

Listen to the Pitch

Read the Pitch​​

Chronic pain affects over 50 million adults in the United States, leading to a significant decrease in quality of life. Despite numerous treatments, many patients still suffer due to the ineffectiveness of current therapies. My research focuses on developing a new non-invasive therapy that targets pain receptors more effectively. Unlike traditional treatments, which often have limited efficacy and significant side effects, this therapy uses advanced bioengineering techniques to deliver targeted relief. To achieve this, I combine biological and technological techniques to create a delivery system that precisely targets pain receptors. Key findings from my research indicate that this new therapy not only reduces pain more effectively than existing treatments but also minimizes side effects, offering a safer alternative for chronic pain sufferers. This new therapy could significantly improve the quality of life for millions of chronic pain sufferers, reducing their dependence on pain medications. In the long term, this approach could pave the way for new treatments for other chronic conditions.

Pitch Components

• Identify the Issue: "Chronic pain affects over 50 million adults in the United States, leading to a significant decrease in quality of life."
• Contextualize the Issue: "Despite numerous treatments, many patients still suffer due to the ineffectiveness of current therapies."
• Describe Your Research: "My research focuses on developing a new non-invasive therapy that targets pain receptors more effectively."
• Highlight Innovation: "Unlike traditional treatments, this therapy uses advanced bioengineering techniques to deliver targeted relief without side effects."
• Describe Your Approach: “To achieve this, I combine biological and technological techniques to create a delivery system that precisely targets pain receptors.”
• Present Key Findings: “Key findings from my research indicate that this new therapy not only reduces pain more effectively than existing treatments but also minimizes side effects, offering a safer alternative for chronic pain sufferers.”
• Highlight Potential Benefits: "This new therapy could significantly improve the quality of life for millions of chronic pain sufferers, reducing their dependence on pain medications."
• Highlight Broader Implications: "In the long term, this approach could pave the way for new treatments for other chronic conditions."