Graduate students who desire to communicate their research more effectively and improve their engagement with diverse audiences can apply for the fifth annual Michigan region Communicating Science Conference for Graduate Students and Postdocs (ComSciCon), which will take place virtually Sept. 30 through Oct. 1.

While graduate students gain training in communication within expert-oriented fields via scientific talks, grants and publications, they are not often trained to develop skills useful for communicating with those who are not fellow practitioners. Science communication, or “sci comm,” refers to scientists or other experts who communicate scientific information to non-expert audiences, including the general public, members of the media, policymakers and more. 

The ComSciCon workshop series is designed to empower graduate students and postdocs to communicate the complex and technical concepts that arise in research in science, engineering and other technical fields to broad and diverse audiences. Building a solid foundation in other methods of science communication at ComSciCon 2023 will strengthen attendees’ skills in both expert and non-expert environments.

Attendees will network with fellow graduate student and postdoc leaders and peers in science communication, produce original writing for publications, and learn from expert writers and communicators.

Evelyn Valdez-Ward will be the keynote speaker and speak on the basics of communication with a focus on navigating identity. 

Attendees will be selected through a competitive application process. Applications are currently open and the application period will close at 11:59 p.m. on July 14. Apply online.

If you have any questions, please email michigan@comscicon.org with any questions. Follow the Communicating Science Conference on Twitter @ComSciConMI; additional information can also be found on the conference's website.