SCONC-HBCU INTERNSHIP

DO YOU LOVE SHARING SCIENCE?

We encourage STEM majors and professional science communicators to join forces in the SCONC-HBCU Summer SciComm Internship. Students majoring in STEM Fields at North Carolina HBCUs are paired with professional science communicators across the Research Triangle Region for ten weeks of paid internship, offering hands-on experiential learning.

Interns might work on a video about a science topic, post social media updates for a public health effort, do research for a slide deck about a new drug or write a magazine style profile of a working scientist. You’ll also receive additional training as a group in taking better photos, making videos and supervising social media for an institution, and then have the chance to meet some working science communicators and ask them about their careers.

Applications for Summer 2025 are open until Friday, February 7, 2025. Contact us for details.

INTERNSHIP DETAILS

Each sponsoring organization coaches and mentors a promising young person and supports them for ten weeks at 20 hours a week at $18/hour (That’s $3,600). SCONC and the Burroughs Wellcome Fund will also provide each student with living expense stipends in June and July that make their total compensation for the experience $7,000.

You can afford to do this!

WHY THIS INTERNSHIP?

In two previous summers, we have shown 27 students what science communications jobs are like. We provide an introductory “boot camp” session and several “lunch and learn” sessions about various aspects of communication careers.

“This summer I was able to review and revise trial documents, complete training on confidentiality and ethics for human subjects research and learn about grants and funding applications for clinical trials. I was able to work on my professional writing skills as well.” —ST from NCCU, Summer 2024. 

This experience has broadened the horizons of both students and sponsors and opened a new career path that many students didn’t even know existed.

“I learned the intricate process of how magazines function. Aspects included the production process, avoiding jargon, knowing your target audience, and using techniques to attract your readers.” —HA from NCA&T, Summer 2024

Even when students don’t end up changing their goals, this communication experience and training will surely make them better scientists and doctors.

Read our 2024 year-end report!

TIMELINE

• January: Our selection process begins, with each sponsor completing a one-paragraph job description for interested students to review.
• February: Each interested student chooses three opportunities they’d like to interview for.
• Early March: Sponsors and students meet on Zoom for half-hour interviews, then both groups rank-order their choices and we match everyone as highly as we can.
• Late May/early June: Interns begin working

HOW TO PARTICIPATE

SPONSORS – Please ask for an example of last year’s job descriptions and have your appealing pitch ready by February 7, 2025.

STUDENTS – Please shine up your resume and assemble some writing samples for us to review (essays, school newspaper, blog posts, college admission essays – anything that shows your writing flair).

Then, please email us by February 7, 2025 if you’re interested in participating or have any other questions about the program.