SciComm of the Future

February 9, 2023 10:49 AM

What's the outlook for science communication careers? I would love to learn more about how options like long-form journalism/ creative nonfiction, technical writing, communications management, grant writing, etc., whether from your own experience or knowledge of the field. (And you're welcome to throw in some predicting-the-future-of-work concepts too!)

I am considering a masters program in environmental communication, and would love to hear your thoughts on how the field looks at the moment! Here's a little more about my priorities:

* I've seen advice to specialize on a particular subset of science.
In terms of topics/issues: I'm particularly interested in issues like climate change/community resiliency, environmental justice in cities (green space, enviro health/pollution, transit, urban planning, etc.), wetlands and bodies of water, etc!

In terms of medium/methodology: I love writing and data storytelling, and also enjoy recording video content (e.g. YouTube vlogging) and audio/radio pieces. My undergrad degree was in anthropology and I love ethnographic work and community-based research. I also really enjoy grantwriting projects for some reason - short term research + translating organizational ideas into a grant narrative resonates with me. I have a moderately deep data analysis/visualization toolkit, although I'm motivated to move *away* from data science/analysis-heavy work.

* My dream career setup involves flexible working (hybrid/remote) and a position earning at least ~85-90k by a couple years in. I prefer more stable environments (like higher ed) to flat-out freelancing, but I also like the idea of mixing and matching a few different roles/projects.

* Outside of my working life, I write climate fiction / speculative fiction with an environmental focus. I'm curious if there are any roles that would let me lean into this intersection of artistic and work interests. For instance, just having a reliable job that works other non-creative-writing parts of my brain would give me time for creative projects; but also, I think environmental humanities and similar spaces are *fascinating*.

Any thoughts you have would be wonderful - thank you!

posted by elephantsvanish to Work & Money (5 answers total)

Best answer: My two cents: there will always be a need for people who can translate complex ideas into lay language. The questions are about the medium you use to translate those ideas and for whom you are translating (both in terms of employer and audience). If you demonstrate skill with a range of media and communicating with different audiences, you should have a lot of opportunities.

You didn’t ask this but I’m not sure how helpful it will be to get a master’s. The thing you need to become a professional in the field is experience. You might get some skills in a master’s program but you’ll also learn them on the job. A master’s program might help you get internships you wouldn’t get otherwise, or you could just apply for jobs at places that interest you. I would avoid taking on debt to do a master’s program.

Feel free to reach out - can elaborate if that would be helpful. Good luck.
posted by kat518 at 11:23 AM on February 9, 2023

Best answer: I worked as a public affairs specialist for the Bureau of Reclamation for 12 years. The agency is full of engineers who only rarely grasped how to interact with the media. They tended to speak in the technical language of construction; stress, volume, mass, etc. And when communicating with local, state and federal lawmakers, they had to do it indirectly lest they be accused of lobbying. In both cases, they tended to feel that dumbing down what they do and how they wanted to talk about it a hinderance. That came from a paternalistic attitude that pervades a lot of historically male dominated professions. But as time passed, they realized they needed translators

The thing about technical people is they tend to think because what they do is simple to them, they assume it should be simple for other people to understand. And as you likely know, the logic of science can only achieve success if it can win over the skepticism and reticence of politics. The public must understand, and they must convince their lawmakers that what they now understand is important enough for lawmakers to support it, legislate it, possibly create new taxes or funding for it, and so on.

There will never not be a need for people to turn science into a story people can get behind. Without you and people like you, all science is is spreadsheets and not many people rush to understand those.
posted by CollectiveMind at 12:11 PM on February 9, 2023

Best answer: I agree that it's a field with possibilities. If you can already create content to a high standard then you should be able to get a job doing that, and experience is generally much more important than education.

I don't know whether they income level you're looking for is achievable quickly. I'm in-house and in a different country, and in my context it would be hard to get that for a content creator and you'd need to be in a more strategic, planning or management role to get more cash. But content creation is really the place to start to gain the experience you need for all that stuff anyway.
posted by plonkee at 2:51 PM on February 9, 2023

Best answer: i work for a large city's health department, and i basically do a lot of the things you're jazzed about - i communicate our data, especially around place/environments, health, climate, and so on. In my experience working in this sector, I've found that a lot of public sector entities are (or should be!) reckoning with what they do with their data, how they communicate their knowledge, how they use their digital assets and create digital services. and, good ones are thinking critically about these issues. Having some technical skills is definitely a plus, especially if you're interdisciplinary - able to use technology as a tool but being able to imagine something greater than just "i mess with code!" And, I think that your salary goals are pretty realistic, location dependent. I notice you're in philly, which has a pretty robust civic technology community - DM me if you'd like to chat further.
posted by entropone at 4:12 PM on February 9, 2023

Best answer: I, more or less, have worked in scientific communications for most of my career (natural resources management, but almost always as a coordinator/grantwriter/project manager, all which depend on boatloads of sci comm). One fascinating growth area that I didn't see mentioned above is the intersection of GIS and storytelling. Tools like ESRI's StoryMaps are gaining traction in many different sectors as a way to visually link geographic data and broader storytelling concepts. That might be another interesting field to explore. As far as your salary goals, that I'm not so certain about... I've been working in this arena (mostly for nonprofits) for 20 years, am now in executive leadership in a nonprofit, and I still don't make that much. Choose your employment routes wisely.
posted by hessie at 1:55 PM on February 10, 2023 [1 favorite]