Science Communication and Publishing

The main responsibility of a science writer is to explain science or medical subjects to a wide variety of lay and professional audiences. Science and medical writing overlap, but are also fairly different. Science writers work for a wide variety of organizations including research institutions, nonprofits, journals, and mass media outlets. Medical writers typically work either as in-house writers for Pharma and Biotech companies or for medical education agencies serving that type of client. They produce a range of medical genres including regulatory documentation of clinical studies.


Example Job Titles

Communications manager for education/outreach | Communications/press officer | Copy editor | Documentary filmmaker | Editor | Education/outreach specialist/coordinator/director | Grant writer/editor| Journalist | Journal editor | Manager/director of scientific communications| Media producer | Media/public relations officer/director | Public information officer | Publisher | Science animator | Science broadcaster | Science/medical/technical writer| Science translator | Scientific/medical illustrator


Get Training & Experience

  • Read the Center for the Advancement of Science Writing's (CASW) Guide to Careers in Science Writing

  • Find out whether your department has a writing specialist who assists faculty in the development of grants and manuscripts and contact them for an informational interview.

  • Attend a Gordon Research Conference related to science visualization and communication

  • Attend a communication or media training workshop on campus

  • Develop or contribute to a blog, podcast, or online magazine (e.g., Science in the News, Chronicle Vitae)

  • Share your scientific expertise with the public at a science café

  • Write (and be sure to get feedback)! Build a portfolio of your writing samples, such as:

    • Scientific publications, technical writing, and protocols

    • Review articles or commentaries for a scientific journal written with your faculty research advisor

    • Non-technical articles for scientific society newsletters

    • Mock press releases

    • Blog/podcast entries

  • To write well, read voraciously in areas of interest to you.

  • Attend ComSciCon to receive training and network with science communication professionals and other early career scientists who share your interests.

  • Participate in science writing and communication training programs offered by research institutes and professional societies, such as the American Society for Microbiology Scientific Writing and Publishing Institute Online.

  • Apply for the AAAS Mass Media Science & Engineering Fellowship.

  • Organize an event for the public at the Cambridge Science Festival or New Hampshire TechFest.

Additional Resources

 

Articles:

 

Books:

Guide to Nontraditional Careers in Science

  • (Chapter 5)
  • Karen Young Kreeger
  • Philadelphia: Taylor and Francis 1999

Alternative Careers in Science: Leaving the Ivory Tower

  • (Chapters 2, 3, 4)
  • Cynthia Robbins-Roth
  • San Diego: Academic Press 1993

Explaining Research

  • (Chapter 17)
  • Dennis Meredith
  • New York: Oxford University Press 2010

 

Professional Societies:


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