FoCI 2027 - April 7-9
The Annual Focus on Creative Inquiry (FoCI) + undergraduate research event is Clemson’s university-wide poster forum that showcases undergraduate research, service-learning and other experiential learning activities. Presentations are targeted toward a general audience, allowing presenters the opportunity to communicate their work outside of their disciplinary terminology. Each CI Project must present at the event a minimum of once every two years. This event is open to all student researchers and scholars to present their work, regardless of an affiliation with a CI Project.
Submit FoCI Proposal
FoCI 2026
In 2026, 358 posters were presented with 1495 CI student and 415 CI mentor co-authors. The three-day event culminated with a Plenary Presentation by the 2025 recipient of the Phil and Mary Bradley Award for Mentoring in Creative Inquiry, Dr. Brooke Bennett, and the announcement of the 2026 Poster Competition Winners.
Printed Poster Winners:
- Identification of The Operating Parameters Needed To Prevent Hydrogel Barrier Collapse Under Continuous Perfusion in a Microfluidic Device to Study Paracrine Signaling
- The Evolution of Day and Night Activity Patterns in Fishes
- From Ruh-Roh to Results: Training Teams to Tackle Conflict
Digital Poster Winners:
- Autonomous Robot for Human-Like Interaction
- ChatGPT Does Surgery! (One Day)
- The Effects of Therapeutic Riding and Equestrian Team Riding Styles on Equine Behavior and Cortisol
Popular Poster:
Rat Offspring Outcomes After Prenatal Exposure to Fermented and Non-Fermented Kratom (Mitragynine speciosa): Random Controlled Trial
Click below to view the FoCI Program
FoCI & CSRF Digital Program
Presenter Information
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Poster requirements
- Poster dimensions must be 48" x 36". Preferred orientation for posters is horizontal.
- Easels, posterboards and clips will be provided.
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Interactive digital presentation requirements
- Digital posters allow for interactive pop-outs, image carousels, videos, and motion graphics.
- You are encouraged to create your own digital presentation though Creative Inquiry can provide templates for your digital poster display.
- Digital poster presenters are recommended to participate in a test run of their presentations on the Watt screens prior to FoCI.
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Presenter responsibilities
- Print your own poster (allow at least 48 hours to print)
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- Size final posters 3’x4’ (portrait or landscape) and save as a PDF.
- Print to the library plotters. See https://ccit.clemson.edu/support/current-students/printing-plotting/ and click the Job Ticketing link under Plotting.
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- TALK TO YOUR MENTOR, you can charge the CI project to print the poster but will need the chart string or to have your mentor plot the poster
- You may also use your personal account which allows for 1 free poster a semester
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- If you are charging to the CI project you will need to do the following and submit to your mentor’s department accountant
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- The backup paperwork acceptable is a PDF of the Print Usage Report for userID that highlights the one poster printed to be charged to the CI account.
- Whomever logged on and sent the poster to the plotter can access the Print Usage Report:
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- Go to papercut.clemson.edu and log in
- In left margin, click on Recent Print Job
- In the bottom left corner there is a link to Export/Print as a PDF/HTML or CSV doc
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- The Printing & Plotting desk is located on the 2nd floor of the Cooper Library, just to the right of the main stairwell. Plotting hours are Monday – Friday, 8:00 AM – 6:00. Contact: ithelp@clemson.edu, or by phone/text at (864) 656-4766.
- Bring your poster to the Watt Center on the day you are scheduled to present
- If you are in the AM session, arrive before 9:30 a.m. and neatly clip your poster to the assigned posterboard.
- If you are in the PM session, arrive by 12:30 p.m. and neatly clip your poster to the assigned posterboard.
- Stand with your poster during your assigned session.
- Should you be chosen, one member of your team must be available at the Plenary Session to receive your award.
