An official website of the United States government
A full-day event where NIH intramural postbacs gather to share their research with each other and the broader NIH community.
About the event
If you are a current NIH postbac, Postbac Poster Day is your opportunity to share the research you have been doing at NIH and practice your communication and networking skills. Whether you are new to NIH or have been here for a while, we encourage postbacs to take advantage of this opportunity to present your work.
Dates and schedule
NIH Postbac Poster Day will be held on Thursday April 30, 2026 at the Natcher Conference Center (Building 45) on the main campus in Bethesda, Maryland.
Sessions are organized by Institutes and Centers into seven in-person sixty-minute poster sessions, with the first session starting at 9:00 am and the final session concluding at 5:00 pm. There is a ten-minute break in between sessions.
Professional Headshots will be offered twice during the day, from 10:30–11:45 AM and 2:00–3:15 PM.
Session Information
| Session | Time (ET) | Institute/Center |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 9:00 – 10:00 AM | CC • NIDCR • NIDDK • NIEHS • NIMHD |
| 2 | 10:10 – 11:10 AM | NCI • NCI-DCEG • NCI-Frederick • NIAID • NIDCD |
| 3 | 11:20 – 12:20 PM | NCCIH • NIA • NIDA • NLM |
| 4 | 12:30 – 1:30 PM | NCATS • NHGRI • NIMH |
| 5 | 1:40 – 2:40 PM | NEI • NHLBI • NIAMS • NINDS |
| 6 | 2:50 – 3:50 PM | NIAAA • NIBIB • NICHD |
| 7 | 4:00 – 5:00 PM | NCI • NIAID |
Invite visitors
The Natcher Conference Center is Building 45 on the National Institutes of Health (NIH) Bethesda Campus, about five miles from Washington, DC. Postbacs who wish to invite guests to campus for Postbac Poster Day must follow guidelines for inviting visitors (VisitNIH resources, you must be on VPN to access).
Program Book
Information for poster presenters
Who should present a poster
All IRTA/CRTA postbacs are welcome to present. You should discuss your plan to participate with your PI before registering. You can share background information on your project, present data you may have collected, discuss any technical problems you might have encountered, and show results.
You, like many of your postbac peers, may have just started and unable to share a full story. We still encourage you to present - posters of all lengths of a story, or something else are welcome. Feel free to present a literature review or a completely new proposal.
Whatever your plan, be sure to discuss your idea with your supervisor or PI before registering.
Registration FAQs
- Can I change the title of my poster?
No modifications will be accepted after registration. You are welcome to modify the title on your actual poster. The complete program book will, however, include the title you submitted. For this reason, you must confirm your poster title with your supervisor BEFORE you register. - I have just learned that I will not be able to present my poster on Postbac Poster Day. What should I do?
Please let us as soon as possible if you will not be able to present.
Follow the poster guidelines
Your poster should meet the guidelines outlined in our recommendations for creating a poster.
Poster judging
All poster sessions will be judged by teams of graduate students, postdocs, staff scientists, and staff clinicians. The authors of posters scoring in the top 20 percent will receive a letter acknowledging their accomplishment. Note: The first author is responsible for presenting the poster and is eligible to win an outstanding poster award.
Poster presentation FAQs
- When will we get information on our assigned session?
Registered presenters will receive an email containing their poster session and number and other details by April 10, 2026. - How will posters be evaluated?
Posters are judged on scientific content, visual presentation, and the presenter’s ability to clearly explain their research and answer questions. - Can I choose my session?
No. Posters are assigned by IC and based on IC registration numbers to ensure an equal distribution of posters across sessions. We appreciate fellows may have certain preferences due to scheduling conflicts or other reasons, but we are not able to accommodate individual requests. - Will poster titles be released to the general NIH community so that they can attend sessions that interest them?
Yes. The program book includes presenter information and poster titles.
Contact
Reach out to us with questions at PBP@od.nih.gov
