2025 WiDS Puget Sound Poster Session

 
 

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We are excited to host our first poster session at the upcoming WiDS Puget Sound conference!

Conference Date: May 30, 2025
Location: MErcer Island Community & Event Center

  • We invite any students who identify as women or gender minorities and who are available to attend the conference in person to submit a 300-word abstract proposing a poster topic.

  • We will feature up to 15 posters, and each presenter will have a 1-minute lightning pitch to tell the audience about your work.

  • Topics may focus on any aspect of the data lifecycle, ranging from data collection and cleaning to analytics and machine learning.

proposals must be submitted by April 25, 2025.

 

FAQ

  • Who is eligible to submit a poster?

    The poster session is open to students who identify as women or gender minorities. Poster presenters are required to attend the poster session in person on May 30, 2025 at the Mercer Island Community & Event Center

  • Do I have to attend the entire conference in order to participate?

    Poster presenters are only required to attend the afternoon portion of the event, from about 1pm to 4pm. Each presenter will give a 1-minute pitch about their poster to the entire audience (around 200 people), and will subsequently have the opportunity to talk with attendees about their work during the networking hour.

  • Do I get to attend the full day conference for free?

    Poster presenters may choose to arrive after lunch, or to attend the full day at a reduced rate of $25, which covers the cost of their lunch.

  • What do I have to bring?

    Each presenter will be responsible for printing their own 2ft by 3ft poster and bringing it to the event.

  • What Supplies are available at the event?

    We will provide easels and foam boards. We will also have tape you can use to affix your poster to a board.

  • Can I bring a poster I already printed for my Capstone (Or other Project)?

    If your proposal is selected, and you already have a printed poster on the data topic you submitted, you are welcome to use the same poster for our session. If your printed poster is not 2ft by 3ft, contact our team at speaker@widspugetsound.org to discuss whether an exception can be made.

  • How do I find a business that prints posters? How much does it cost?

There are a variety of printers who are able to print this size, but prices will vary greatly. Printers on university campuses, like Seattle U’s SuperCopy, are often cheaper than many alternatives, with prices under $30. There are also online services that can ship the posters to you; be aware that shipping costs may be more than expected because of the size. Also, note that many printers require up to 5 days to print, and rush fees will make last-minute printing more costly.


Topic Brainstorming

We welcome submissions focused on any aspect of the journey through the data lifecycle—from data creation to business value. If you need extra guidance or inspiration, check out the concepts below!

 
 

How Is Data Born?

Focus: Data Creation & Acquisition

Sample Topics:

  • IoT and sensor data

  • Web scraping & APIs

  • Synthetic data generation

  • User and system-generated content

Moving Data Where It Needs to Go

Focus: Data Ingestion & Integration

Sample Topics:

  • ETL/ELT pipelines

  • Data mesh and real-time ingestion

  • Connecting structured and unstructured sources

Trusting Your Data

Focus: Data Quality, Governance & Security

Sample Topics:

  • Data validation and lineage

  • Privacy (GDPR, CCPA) and compliance

  • Data stewardship and trust frameworks

Where Does All the Data Live?

Focus: Data Architecture & Storage

Sample Topics:

  • Cloud data platforms (lakehouse, warehouse)

  • Scalability and performance

  • Data partitioning and access management

What’s in the Data?

Focus: Data Exploration & Analysis

Sample Topics:

  • Exploratory Data Analysis (EDA)

  • Hypothesis testing

  • Visual analytics and feature discovery

Teaching Machines to Learn from Data

Focus: AI/ML & Advanced Analytics

Sample Topics:

  • Predictive modeling

  • Generative AI and deep learning

  • Model training and experimentation

From Notebook to Real World

Focus: MLOps & Deployment

Sample Topics:

  • Model deployment and CI/CD

  • Monitoring, data drift, and retraining

  • Real-world use cases and operationalization

Telling the Story & Driving Action

Focus: Data Storytelling & Business Impact

Sample Topics:

  • Communicating insights effectively

  • Dashboards and data visualization tools

  • Measuring ROI and enabling decisions