AGS & GPS-BIOMED Elevator Pitch Completion
Introduction
An elevator pitch is an informal speech delivered by you to another person in a
professional or social situation such as joining a campus organization, applying for an
internship, applying for a job, or networking at a social event. Many employers and
professionals often ask “tell me about yourself” and having a prepared elevator pitch is
a useful way to answer this question and market your unique abilities. The pitch is about
you—but specifically about the key things that make you “stand out” from other people.
The AGS & GPS-BIOMED pitch competition is intended to help you craft an engaging
elevator pitch and deliver that pitch confidently. As graduate students and postdocs,
your pitch should be intended for a broad audience. A good elevator pitch is one that
captures a listener’s attention quickly, is persuasive, and excites interests. We’d like for
you to make the case to employers, entrepreneurs, investors and fellow colleagues to
invest in you!
Here are some questions that could help craft your pitch:
 What are your personal goals?
 What makes you uniquely qualified to achieve your research goals?
 What sets you apart from the competition?
Guidelines


The live competition will take place on Monday, Nov 23 from 6-8PM. Location TBD
Trainees will present a 1.5 - 2 minute elevator pitch to a general public that will
pique their interest in hiring you to be a part of their team. See rubric that
follows.
• Every second after the 2-minute mark, there will be 0.5-point penalty.
Trainees will be judged by a panel of local entrepreneurs, professionals and
campus leaders.
All trainees must submit a self recorded “rough-draft” of their pitch by Nov 11 at
6PM.
The top 25 video submissions will be selected to compete in the finale.



Video Rough Draft Submission


Email videos under 25MB directly to eflores@uci.edu. Please compress or zip
videos if need be.
To upload videos using Dropbox or Google drive, please email eflores@uci.edu
to request a shared folder/link.
1
2
3
4
5 TOTAL
(no half
points)
CONTENT
Not engaging.
Content does not
capture
audience’s
interest. Speaker
does not seem to
have a clear
message.
Some of the
content captures
the audience’s
attention.
Speaker’s
message is
slightly unclear.
Parts of the pitch
are interesting and
engaging but it is
inconsistent.
Speaker’s message
is clear but is not
supported
throughout the
pitch.
Grabs but does
not continuously
hold the
audience’s
attention. Clear
message with
good supportive
ideas.
Content grabs
and holds
audience’s
attention the
whole time.
Interesting,
engaging and
thought
provoking. Clear
message and with
fully supported
ideas.
VOCAL
DELIVERY
Does not use
vocal variety. Little
to no change in
inflection or
pacing. Hard to
hear. Speaker
does not sound
passionate,
connected or
interested in their
own content. Can
hear nerves in the
delivery. Very little
to no breath
support.
Continuously uses
filler words (uh,
um and so).
Limited use of
vocal variety.
Inflection, pacing
and tone need
improvement.
Seems out of
breath, is hard to
hear at times and
seems interested
in their own
content but lacks
vocal commitment
when sharing
ideas. Obvious
presence of filler
words (uh, um,
so).
Some variation of
vocal
characteristics. Use
of pitch, pace and
tone seemed
inconsistent at
times. Filler words
(uh, um, so) were
used and some
nerves showed, but
it was not
distracting.
Good use of vocal
variety including
pitch, pace and
tone. Speaker
seemed vocally
interested and
committed to
sharing ideas.
Very few filler
words (uh, um, so)
were used.
Great use of
vocal variety
including pitch,
pace and tone.
Seemed to
naturally convey
confidence,
enthusiasm and
passion though
their vocal
delivery. Had full
breath support.
Was fully able to
be understood.
Very little to no
filler words (uh,
um, so) used.
BODY
LANGUAGE
Body language
reflects a
reluctance to
interact with the
audience.
Distracting
movement and/or
unnaturally stiff
from nerves. Does
not look
comfortable on
stage. Very little
eye contact.
Body language
reflects some
discomfort. Visibly
nervous or tense.
Facial
expressions,
posture and
gestures may be
used but are not
effective or do not
seem connected
to content. Very
little eye contact
with audience.
Speaker has some
nerves or tension in
their body but it is
not distracting.
Some gestures are
used to emphasize
main points, but
may look slightly
forced. Uses eye
contact with the
audience, but is
inconsistent. Some
body language
seems connected to
content.
Speaker seems
comfortable on
stage. Posture,
facial expressions
and gestures are
used to
communicate main
points. Most facial
expressions and
gestures match
content and tone
of the pitch. Uses
eye contact
effectively.
Speaker looks
comfortable and
confident. Natural
use of posture,
facial expressions
and gestures.
Body language
matches the tone
and content and
helps convey
ideas effectively.
Seems to be
talking to the
audience.
Effectively uses
eye contact to
make a
connection with
the audience.
ORGANIZATION
Does not present
ideas in a clear
and logical way.
Very hard to
follow. Unfocused
and unclear.
Ideas take effort
to follow. Does
not seem to flow
easily.
Ideas are mostly
clear. Some
organizational
improvements could
be made.
Ideas are well
organized. The
listener can follow
and understand
the majority of the
ideas.
Perfectly
organized. Ideas
flow naturally and
easily. Logical
and clear.