Discover tips for success from Dejan Milasinovic
Dejan Milasinovic won PCR’s Got Talent in 2016 and at EuroPCR 2019, he was a member of the jury for the competition.
PCR’s Got Talent is a unique opportunity for young members of the PCR community to showcase their research in front of a worldwide audience while simultaneously exposing it to high-level scientific scrutiny by a panel of leading senior members of our community.
How did taking part in the competition help you in your career?
Aswell as gaining visibility on the EuroPCR stage as a young researcher, thanks to PCR’s Got Talent, I learned how to simplify complex research data into a logical sequence of small pieces of information that lead to one focused main message. That has helped me both to be a better presenter of scientific data, and to learn how to efficiently organise my research practice.
Now that you've also been a jury member, what advice would you offer future participants for presenting their abstract for the first time?
Firstly, keep focused—base your presentation on a single important message about your research that you want to convey to the audience. Secondly, use a logical structure—organise your presentation in a rational sequence of steps that lead to the focused message (using as few slides as possible). Thirdly, highlight the clinical relevance—make a direct link between the main scientific message and everyday clinical practice.
What is the most helpful suggestion you received prio to winning the competition in 2016?
As part of PCR’s Got Talent, contestants get the chance to be coached by Allan Spencer and his team who have a wealth of experience in educational public speaking.
Of all the important advice that I received from them, the one thing that stuck in my mind the most was to not allow the slides to get in the way of the presentation.
This is especially important in medicine, since doctors are often prone to presenting a mass of facts that can be difficult to follow, even by an audience of professionals. Instead, keep focused on conveying simple, clear messages, using only a limited number of slides for visual support.
The EuroPCR 2019 Course was the fifth year for PCR's Got Talent. Do you think the quality has improved since the beginning?
This competition has grown over time both in terms of the interest it attracts and the quality of presentations, fuelling a competitive spirit among peers, which lies at the heart of any successful research project. Specifically, the truly transformative ideas in clinical research appear to be the ones that prove to be simple and relevant – and those are exactly the qualities sought in PCR’s Got Talent presenters.
