My thesis in 180 seconds
Presentation of the competition
Organised in France by the CNRS and France Universités since 2014, the "Ma thèse en 180 secondes" (My thesis in 180 seconds) popular science and eloquence competition (MT180) aims to showcase the work carried out by doctoral students as well as demonstrate the dynamism of research in France, from the humanities and social sciences to the environment, biology and physics.
Each candidate has 3 minutes to present his or her research topic to the general public in a concise, understandable and convincing way!
The jury's attention is drawn to three criteria: the effort made to explain the subject in layman's terms, the ability to arouse curiosity and the ability to demonstrate public speaking skills.
2024 Edition
In 2024, Pierre Baby, won the 2ᵉ jury prize at the regional final of Ma Thèse en 180 secondes on 23 February in Aix-en-Provence.
Following his performance in the national semi-final on Friday 29 March 2024, Pierre Baby qualified for the national final on 5 June 2024 in Nice. He was one of 16 doctoral students selected.
Pierre Baby is a doctoral student in ecotoxicology and entomology at theMediterranean Institute of Biodiversity and Marine and Continental Ecology (IMBE).
>> Read more
2022 Edition
News - April 2022
On 22 March, the local semi-final and final of Ma Thèse en 180 secondes took place in Marseille, bringing together doctoral students from the universities of Avignon, Aix-Marseille and Toulon.
26 doctoral students, including four from Avignon Université, took part in the regional selection of MT180's, which took place on Tuesday afternoon in Marseille. They were :
- Clémentine Leroy, doctoral student at the UR 406 Bees and the Environment laboratory. Her thesis is on "Assessing the sensitivity of wild bees to variations in floral resources using an ecophysiological approach".
- Thomas Pressecq, doctoral student in the INRAE Plant Pathology laboratory, Mistral team. The subject of his thesis is: "Development of a decision-making tool to promote microbial biocontrol".
- Amandine Rousset, doctoral student in the SQPOV laboratory (Green team). Her subject is "Intensification of the aqueous phase (solvent-free) extraction process for guayule resin using a combination of innovative techniques".
- Estelle Turc, doctoral student in the INRAE Plant Pathology laboratory, Mistral team, on a CIFRE placement with Elephant Vert. Her thesis topic is "Contribution to the development of a biocontrol agent against Sclerotinia sclerotiorum on oilseed rape".
At the end of the afternoon, 12 doctoral students were selected to take part in the final, which took place that evening at the MUCEM in Marseille, and was broadcast live on Facebook and YouTube. It was watched by a large, lively and happy audience!
Two doctoral students from Avignon University were selected from the 12 applicants: Amandine Rousset and Estelle Turc.
After deliberation by the jury and a public vote, Amandine Rousset won the 3rd Jury Prize and the Audience Prize. This qualifies her for the national semi-final on 8 and 9 April 2022 in Paris.alongside Priscille Riondel, 1st Prize of the Jury (Aix-Marseille Université/Institut de Neurosciences de la Timone).
Congratulations to all the participants and well done to Amandine Rousset and Pricille Riondel. See you on 8 and 9 April for the national semi-final!
2019 Edition
For the 2019 edition, it's Camille HabaultPhD student at the laboratory ICTT in comparative literature, who represented Avignon Université with her subject "Actors and machines: robots in the stage space. The role of computers in contemporary theatre and choreography".
>> See our latest news on MT180
Updated on 30 October 2025