The ABCs of Answering Difficult Questions in Academic Presentations

No matter what your experience level might be, the three principles below can provide a helpful guide for answering questions from your audience. Put them together to form a response: A + B + C

A: Acknowledge the question

• Paraphrase the question
• Say something like “that’s a great question!” or “...interesting question”
• Ask the audience member to clarify their question if needed

B: Be honest

• If you don’t know, that’s ok, don’t pretend you do

C: Contribute something based on your knowledge

• Provide an answer that acknowledges what you do know and make an educated guess if needed
• Offer to look up the answer or explore areas for further research with the audience member afterwards
• If appropriate (e.g., if you are facilitating an activity or in a TA role), ask the audience what they think

Some Example Prompts

“That’s a great question! I’m not sure about the answer because it was beyond the scope of our project but if I had to speculate based on our research, I’d say …”

“Are you asking about …? That’s a really interesting point! Can we chat after the presentation, as I think this could be something interesting to explore?”

“Great question! Before I answer, what do people in the audience think (then provide a summary with your opinion added)?”