Poster Printing Guidelines
6 Steps to Get Your Poster Printed
Step 1: Download a poster template
The poster printers are 42 inches wide, therefore one of the dimensions of any poster must be 42 inches or less.
- Poster Template 42×42 inches (PPT) – recommended size and Olin-Rice poster board size
- Poster Template 42×56 inches (PPT)
- Poster Template 36×42 inches (PPT)
- Design your own using Macalester’s logos (login required) provided by Communications & Marketing
Step 2: Design your poster
- Follow the style guidelines posted below.
- IMPORTANT: Preview your poster on your computer at 100% magnification before submitting for printing, to ensure that your images are clear and not blurry or pixelated when viewed at full size.
Step 3: Name your poster’s file with the following specifications
- Start with the professor’s last name –
- Department name –
- Your (student’s) name –
- Follow this example: Kuwata-Chemistry-Jane-Doe
Step 4: Save your poster as one of the accepted file types
- ppt, pptx, pdf, tiff
Step 5: Send the file for printing with the following to posterprinting@macalester.edu
- Attach your poster file
- Due date and time. Example: I need to pick up this poster by noon on March 31.
- An email from a faculty member approving your poster
Step 6: Send the file within the print production deadline—at least 3 business days before its due
- In order to ensure your poster is ready for pickup at the time you specified, all of the above information must be received at least 3 business days in advance.
- Example: if you need to pick your poster up by 1:00 PM Friday, it must be sent by 1:00 PM Tuesday. For groups of 5 or more, please notify us one month in advance of when the posters will be submitted.
Style advice for easily readable posters
- Use easily readable font sizes, bigger is better. People will be reading your poster from 5 feet away or more.
- Sample text sizes:
Title: 110-160pt.
Large headings: 60–54pt.
Smaller headings: 40–50pt.
Paragraph text: 32–36pt.
Photo captions: 25–28pt.
Bibliography: 16–22pt. - Don’t forget about text in diagrams and graphs!
- Don’t put text over images.
- Avoid large blocks of dark color.
- The contrast on the computer screen is better than on the poster, so err on the side of visibility. (i.e. don’t put black text on a bright blue background).
- Poster boards in Olin-Rice are designed for 42×42 posters, if yours exceeds this size it will overhang the board and could cause space issues.
Science posters for on-campus sessions must abide by the following rule:
No color backgrounds or other excessive use of color.
Just the right amount of color | Too much color |
---|---|
DO use a white background. | DON’T use a color background. |
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A white background uses less ink to print. | A colorful background uses much more ink to print than a white background. |
Faculty: Are you taking students to a conference or holding a classroom poster session?
Providing the information below will help make the process as seamless as possible for you and your students, as we can prepare in advance.
- When are you leaving or hosting the session?
- How many posters would you estimate will be printed?
- How will students be submitting the posters to you? Via Email, Moodle submission, Google Drive, other.