Strengthening Ties Between the Media and the Engineering Community

For each of the past three years, IEEE-USA has sponsored an engineering student in the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) Mass Media Science and Engineering Fellows Program. The program is designed to strengthen the connections among scientists, engineers and journalists by placing advanced science and engineering students in newsrooms across the country. The program, which will enter its 30th year next summer, has placed more than 400 fellows with news magazines, newspapers, TV networks and local organizations.

The Program
IEEE-USA Mass Media Fellows work for 10 weeks in the summer as reporters, researchers and production assistants in mass media organizations nationwide. Fellows collaborate with media professionals to enhance coverage of science- and engineering- related issues in the media in order to improve public understanding and appreciation of science and technology.
Through the program, fellows observe and participate in the process by which events and ideas become news; improve their communication skills by learning to describe complex technical subjects in a manner understandable to the lay public; and increase their understanding of editorial decision making and the way in which information is effectively disseminated. Fellowship applicants must be U.S. members of the IEEE and must be enrolled college or university juniors or seniors or graduate or post-graduate students in the natural, physical, health, engineering or social sciences. IEEE-USA underwrites the expenses for the IEEE-USA fellow.

How to Apply

For information on becoming an IEEE-USA Mass Media Fellow, contact AAAS at 202 326 6670 or IEEE-USA Communications Director Pender M. McCarter at 202 785 0017.