Julia Ho, a fourth year doctoral student in architectural engineering, has been named one of 10 finalists for the 2025-26 J. Jeffrey and Ann Marie Fox Graduate School Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition.
Engineering student named finalist in 2025-26 Three Minute Thesis competition
The J. Jeffrey and Ann Marie Fox Graduate School named 10 graduate students finalist for the competition
Feb 5, 2026
Editor’s note: A version of this article originally appeared on Penn State News.
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Julia Ho, a fourth year doctoral student in architectural engineering, has been named one of 10 finalists for the 2025-26 J. Jeffrey and Ann Marie Fox Graduate School Three Minute Thesis (3MT) competition.
Ho studies how to reduce energy use of heating and cooling systems with a specific focus on district energy systems — large, typically centralized systems supplying sizable and/or multiple buildings. She is also the president of the Architectural Engineering Graduate Student Association, which aims to improve professional and personal relationships by strengthening departmental community. After graduation, she wants to pursue a career where she can contribute to climate change mitigation and adaptation efforts, whether that is through research, policy or industry practice.
Ho and the other nine students will compete in the final round of Penn State’s 3MT competition, taking place Saturday, March 28, at 3 p.m. at the Nittany Lion Inn, University Park. First- and second-place winners will take home $1,000 and $500, respectively. In addition, the Graduate and Professional Student Association (GPSA) will sponsor a People’s Choice Award, allowing the Penn State graduate education community to vote for their favorite presentation, worth $500.
The first-place winner of Penn State’s competition will advance to a regional-level competition, facing off against winners from other universities in the northeastern United States. Top-scoring students at the regional level will go on to compete nationally.
See a full list of finalists and read more about each finalist.
About 3MT
Developed initially by the University of Queensland (UQ), Australia, 3MT is an academic research competition intended to help graduate students effectively communicate their research or scholarship in three minutes or less to a general, non-specialist audience. Each competitor is permitted one presentation slide to serve their pitch as a visual aid.
3MT is hosted and sponsored by the Fox Graduate School in collaboration with the GPSA. Learn more about 3MT.
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