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Medill Media and Science Communication (Cluster and Certificate)

Northwestern’s Medill Media and Science Communication (MMaSC) program integrates journalism and communication skills with scientific research training to increase individual and lab effectiveness and engagement with public audiences around the importance of science, the mechanisms of science, and the wonders of scientific discovery. MMaSC teaches media literacy to Northwestern-trained scientists, giving them outstanding tools to improve science literacy and engage with public audiences beyond academia.

The program prioritizes professional skill development in writing and communication of scientific ideas, comprehension of the media landscape and consumer audiences, and preparation for the high demands of public engagement in science throughout the academic and professional sectors. The program is administered through a partnership between The Medill School of Journalism, Media and Integrated Marketing Communications and The Graduate School. Students can choose to take a three-unit cluster of classes or earn a five-unit certificate granted by The Graduate School at Northwestern University.

Who should apply?

Doctoral candidates from STEM and STEM-adjacent fields across TGS programs, including those in the McCormick School of Engineering & Applied Science and Feinberg School of Medicine, are eligible to apply. Past participants have come from (but are not limited to) the following programs:

  • Anthropology
  • Applied Physics
  • Astronomy
  • Biomedical Engineering
  • Chemistry
  • Civil and Environmental Engineering
  • Computer Science
  • Driskill Graduate Training Program in Life Sciences
  • Earth and Planetary Sciences
  • Electrical Engineering
  • Health Sciences Integrated Program
  • Interdisciplinary Biological Sciences (IBiS)
  • Learning Sciences
  • Materials Science and Engineering
  • Mechanical Engineering
  • Northwestern University Interdepartmental Neuroscience (NUIN)
  • Physical Therapy and Engineering
  • Physics
  • Plant Biology and Conservation
  • Psychology

How to apply

Enrolled PhD students in The Graduate School must first apply for acceptance into the SCIMEDIA 517-0 course (usually offered in Fall and Spring quarters). To pursue the cluster or certificate following completion of SCIMEDIA 517-0, students need permission from the program director and their program. In order to petition to have a Graduate Certificate awarded and appear on the transcript, students must submit the  Application for a Graduate Certificate  once all Graduate Certificate requirements have been completed, but no later than the time that the student files for graduation (in the final quarter of study). 

Who to contact

Please contact the program director, listed below, with questions about this program.

Patti Wolter
Helen Gurley Brown Magazine Professor

Medill School of Journalism, Media, Integrated Marketing Communications

Fisk Hall 1845 Sheridan Rd., Rm 201C

Evanston, Il 60208

Phone: (847) 491-5269

Email: p-wolter@northwestern.edu