Career Development
Learn more about the AAAS Mass Media Fellowship and meet two students who successfully navigated the application process. Lunch will be provided.
Each year, the American Association for the Advancement of Science selects a class of Mass Media Fellows. These students spend the summer at national and regional media outlets, communicating science to a public audience. Menaka Wilhelm (MMF '17) and Casey O'Hara (MMF '14) will share how they navigated the application process, what it was like to work as a science reporter, and how the program affected their future plans.
Out of the Lab, Into the Newsroom: The AAAS Mass Media Fellowship
Tuesday, December 5
Noon-1pm
Elings Hall, Room 1601
Pizza will be provided
*To help us estimate food, âplease RSVP*
Menaka Wilhelm
Graduate Student in ââMechanical Engineering
After finishing a Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering at UCSB, Menaka relocated to San Francisco for her Mass Media Fellowship at WIRED. She spent the summer writing essays about all kinds of science, from the biomechanics of tuna fins to the researchers who study wildfire pollutants from planes above the smoke. This winter, she is headed to an internship at NPR's headquarters in Washington D.C., where she will cover health, food, and international development.
Casey O'Hara
Graduate Student in Bren/NCEAS
After completing his Master's degree from the Bren School at UCSB (following an earlier career in engineering and STEM education), he was placed in a Mass Media Fellowship at Portland's The Oregonian. Casey enjoyed the opportunity to explore environmental conflicts including wolves vs. ranchers, wasps vs. caterpillars, salmon vs. the Bonneville Power Authority, and adorable pikas vs. anthropogenic climate change. While many of his cohort have gone on to earn success as professional science writers, he has leveraged his MMF experience to become a more effective scientist and STEM educator.
Please RSVP to learn more about the AAAS Mass Media Fellowship.