Developing Science Communication Skills in Early Career Scientists

Suffolk University, Boston MA

Investigators

Abstract

Science communication is now recognized as an important skill for career advancement and for public understanding of science. Early career scientists (undergraduate, graduate, within two years of graduation) who are entering the workforce must be prepared to communicate science to a wide range of audiences, from the general public to lab groups to research conference scientists. Effective communications require scientists to visually and verbally translate scientific information for those with limited backgrounds in science as well as for scientists whose expertise varies from the presenter. Unfortunately, very few programs offer communications training to early career scientists. This project will provide such professional development to early career scientists via a combined virtual and in-person workshop focused on verbal and visual science communication skills. The half-day virtual programming will be held several weeks prior to the one-day in-person workshop. The in-person workshop will offer participants an opportunity to practice their presentations prior to a major ocean science conference. This workshop will build upon previous workshops (2019 through 2021) and incorporates requests from participants of prior years to modify the workshop content. For example, the workshop now contains more international-focused awareness in the verbal sessions and poster/presentation skills for a scientific conference in the visual components. The workshop will include presentations from two experts in visual communications and verbal communications. Some work will be held virtually in advance of the conference, and the in-person workshop will be held in conjunction with the Association for the Sciences of Limnology and Oceanography (ASLO) meeting in June 2023, a meeting that many ocean scientists regularly attend. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.