UT Austin Finds Event Management Magic with Fourwaves
The College of Natural Sciences at UT Austin hosts a dynamic Undergraduate Research Forum that attracts around 1,000 attendees each year. By adopting Fourwaves, the college eliminated administrative hassles, simplified student submissions, and created a polished, user-friendly participant experience.
Annual Undergraduate Research Forum
Higher Education – University of Texas at Austin, College of Natural Sciences
Over 1,000 participants and 400 presenters
UT Austin’s Undergraduate Research Forum: Celebrating Scientific Inquiry
The Undergraduate Research Forum at UT Austin’s College of Natural Sciences is an eminent annual event highlighting innovative student-led research. With participation soaring over 1,000 participants including 600 students presenting 400 distinct research projects, the event fosters vital connections between students, alumni, faculty, and global research partners. Originally smaller in scale, the forum has evolved substantially, adapting to hybrid models that combine virtual and in-person experiences to better serve a diverse, widespread audience.
Our forum offers students a crucial platform to showcase their research to peers, faculty, alumni, and international partners. It's a deeply rewarding event for our entire community.
Program Manager for Experiential Learning, College of Natural Sciences, UT Austin
The Challenge: Overcoming Fragmented Management Tools
Previously, the forum’s organization relied on survey-based software, like Qualtrics, for registration and abstract submissions, as well as other digital tools, such as Airtable, for managing virtual poster displays. This disjointed approach meant that every update required manual edits, the merging of multiple spreadsheets, and ongoing communication with students, creating additional work for the event team.
In addition, maintaining an appealing and intuitive virtual poster section was challenging, which negatively affected the experience of remote participants and alumni looking to engage with the research content.
Our prior system was highly manual and time-consuming. Students frequently needed updates to their submissions, forcing us to manage spreadsheets and complicated databases constantly.
Program Manager for Experiential Learning, College of Natural Sciences, UT Austin
Fourwaves: Centralized, Intuitive Academic Event Management
After exploring several event management solutions, the team at UT Austin selected Fourwaves for its robust capabilities, particularly its specialized virtual poster management. Fourwaves offered a fully integrated approach, efficiently combining registration, submission management, event website and virtual poster presentations into one cohesive solution.
Fourwaves simplified event management with an intuitive interface, making it easy for students and administrators to update submissions and registrations directly. Maggie and her team especially appreciated Fourwaves' visually appealing virtual poster displays, praised by attendees for their clarity and professionalism. The solution also offered flexibility, allowing students to refine their presentations by uploading new versions right up to the event day.
Fourwaves keeps everything centralized and simplifies the management process. The automatic creation of a professional online poster gallery is a standout feature, saving countless hours of manual work.
Program Manager for Experiential Learning, College of Natural Sciences, UT Austin
Additional Fourwaves advantages included:
- Immediate file uploads: Allowed real-time updates and late data integration, enhancing the accuracy and relevance of student presentations.
- Complete administrative autonomy: Enabled rapid, independent revisions to event webpages without departmental delays typically associated with university-managed websites.
- Quick training and onboarding: Required minimal instruction, allowing student workers and new staff to quickly adopt and effectively manage the system.
- Reliable technical support: Provided responsive support and swift implementation of feedback-driven improvements.
The autonomy provided by Fourwaves is a game-changer. We can quickly adapt our event content and respond to student needs as agilely as possible.
Program Manager for Experiential Learning, College of Natural Sciences, UT Austin
Book a 15 minute call and we'll show you how Fourwaves can help.
Future Plans: Sustained Growth and Enhanced Consistency
Encouraged by the tangible improvements and positive experiences, UT Austin’s College of Natural Sciences has committed to Fourwaves through a multi-year contract, ensuring consistency and continuous improvement for future forums. The familiarity gained by returning judges, faculty, and students promises even smoother management and higher-quality events moving forward.
UT Austin is exploring ways to expand Fourwaves usage across other research departments, reflecting the platform's versatility and effectiveness.
About the College of Natural Sciences at the University of Texas at Austin
The College of Natural Sciences at The University of Texas at Austin is a leading institution dedicated to advancing scientific discovery and education. As the university's largest college, it offers a diverse array of top-ranked programs in fields such as biology, chemistry, computer science, mathematics, and physics. With a commitment to fostering innovation, the college provides students with transformative research opportunities and a collaborative learning environment. Its vibrant community of scholars and researchers is at the forefront of addressing global challenges through science and technology.