Large format printing is available for college, research unit, and departmentally sanctioned activities only. Supplies for these printers are quite expensive - please do not submit trivial requests. For for more personal, non-research or non-engineering course related print-outs, please also be aware of the free services provided by OSU Media Hub, which include poster printing and laminating among others.

  • A minimum of 24 hrs notice (Mon-Fri) is required for printing jobs. Your job maybe ready sooner, but you shouldn't expect it to be.
  • Please size and layout your document appropriately, with an artboard or document dimensions that match the desired print dimensions. 
  • The COE printers use 42" or 36" wide paper, primarily glossy.
  • Submit your poster as a PDF - we no longer accept any other file formats for printing. If you need help with PDF export/creation send email to coe.support@oregonstate.edu
  • Do not submit posters with a solid color backgrounds. This wastes ink, and causes drying issues. If a poster is submitted with a solid background, we will ask you to remove the background and resubmit it.

Creating a Large Format Poster in PowerPoint

Creating a poster in PowerPoint is similar to creating a single slide; just think of it as one very big slide. The only difference is that the page-set up must be set to a custom size. This should be done before the poster is actually created.

To set up a poster:

  1. Open PowerPoint.
  2. Select blank slide in New Slide window.
  3. Select OK.
  4. Select the Design bar at the top.
  5. Select Slide Size in the Customize section.
  6. Select Custom Slide Size in the drop down.
  7. Change width to 48" (or preferred size).
  8. Change height to 42" or 36" (or preferred size).
  9. Select OK.

NOTE: Because the poster is sized larger than a standard paper size, a page set-up error window may appear explaining that the current page size you selected exceeds the printable area of paper in the printer. Select OK. Do Not Select Fix - this will change your poster size to a standard paper size. Once the page set-up is complete, the poster can be created as though you are creating one large poster. Do not create separate slides! Following are a few tips and tricks for creating posters to avoid problems.

Tips & Tricks

  • We require 24 hour notice to print the poster. The sooner you send it in, the sooner we can have it done.
  • Paper sizes of 42" and 36" are the maximum of the smaller side of the poster.
  • Please do not create posters with a solid color background. This wastes ink, and causes drying issues. If a poster is submitted with a solid background, we will ask you to remove the background and resubmit it.
  • Font size for poster titles usually range between 60-77 pt. Text usually ranges from 24-36 pt.
  • When copying text from another program or file, be sure to copy the text into a text box. This will simplify the process of manipulating the text size and font once it is placed in the poster. Copying and pasting text directly into the poster (without a textbox) is similar to copying an image into a poster. You will be unable to change the font type and can only change the size by resizing the box.
  • Avoid using small web images that are 72dpi in large posters. They will blow up to be very pixelated and wont look crisp.
  • To keep an image in proportion when enlarging, hold down the shift key while dragging to enlarge.
  • Do not use exotic fonts - they may not exist on the computer that will be doing the printing - if you must use a non-standard font be prepared to supply the font to support if necessary.

Submit your file for printing here

If you have any questions please contact coe.support@oregonstate.edu