ETH Zurich – Focus Project Program
Helping future scientists present with story and substance
How do you help 50 science and engineering students move beyond data, to present work with clarity, emotion, and meaning?
ETH Zurich invited me to design a two-part storytelling workshop for their Focus Project program: a capstone initiative where student teams share the results of year-long research challenges in front of peers, professors, and invited guests.
ETH Zurich (Department of Health Sciences and Technology, D-HEST) runs “Focus Projects” that pair undergraduate students with real-world research challenges. At the end of the year, each team presents their work to peers, professors, and external guests: a moment of scientific pride, pressure, and public speaking.
The team at ETH wanted to help students go beyond just delivering data. They wanted them to connect, to speak with clarity, confidence, and human resonance.
Client context
The Challenge
Many of these students had never been taught to reflect, narrate, or shape meaning. Their world is precision, logic, and process, not emotion. Suddenly, they were being asked to speak about learning, failure, and impact: in ways that landed with human connection.
We had:
2 workshop sessions
50 students
And just a few hours to shift the frame
Approach
We created a two-part experience designed for impact under pressure:
-
→ Personal reflection, emotional resonance, and intention
→ KFD Model (Know–Feel–Do) + narrative warmups -
→ Translating technical work into clear storylines
→ Tools like “Want–Try–Get” and “But/Therefore” logic
→ Group coaching + a take-home Storytelling Cheat Sheet
Students embraced the idea that failure and iteration are story-worthy.
Many teams built presentations that started with real questions or personal insights — not just technical context.
Organizers noted that student presentations were more emotionally resonant and structured than those of some faculty (!)
What worked:
Key takeaways:
Storytelling in STEM needs both structure and stakes.
Students value practical tools over abstract inspiration: especially under pressure.
Timing is critical: story training works best when embedded early in a project journey, not at the end.
Outcomes:
Results:
Despite the challenges, many students reframed how they thought about presenting science. They moved from “we built a thing” to “here’s what we wanted, what we tried, and what we learned.”
This wasn’t just a storytelling win, it was a mindset shift.
Katrin Wolf, Educational Developer D-HEST, ETH Zürich