Scientific Communication
Scientific communication or SciComm, both written and oral, is the cornerstone of success in biomedical research, yet formal instruction is rarely provided. Our research has shown that trainees who engage in SciComm (including writing, conversational speaking and rehearsed presenting) and who have positive expectations about doing so will be more likely to stay in an academic research career. Furthermore, by equipping mentors with strategies and techniques to be responsive to trainees in their SciComm skills, trainees will be more likely to persist in research careers and be more productive scientists.
Based on extensive SciComm research, we have developed training opportunities such as SciComm workshops, mentor workshops to get practice in evidence-based approaches to SciComm mentoring, individual consultations for mentors and/or trainees, and online resources and tips to help trainees and mentors.
For more information on our training opportunities, including the Scientific Communication Advances Research Excellence (SCOARE) faculty workshop, which provides practical strategies for mentoring trainee SciComm skills, see below.
- Productivity in SciComm refers to how often trainees engage in any level of scholarly writing or present at a scientific meeting, regardless of peer review or publication.
- Self-efficacy in SciComm is a trainee’s perception that they are competent at SciComm.
- Mentoring in SciComm encompasses a variety of behaviors trainees report experiencing with their mentors regarding SciComm.
- Science identity is the sense that one ‘belongs’ in a science career.
- Outcome expectations for SciComm are trainees’ anticipated consequences of engaging in SciComm.
Our research on doctoral and postdoctoral trainees has shown that together, these factors directly and indirectly predict trainee intention to be an independent investigator (Cameron, Lee, Anderson, Trachtenberg, & Chang, 2020).
Description of SCOARE Mentor Training Workshops
The NIH-funded Scientific Communication Advances Research Excellence (SCOARE) program is the translation into practice of over 10 years of research on the links between scientific communication and trainee research career intention. It consists of a 5-hour in-person or 6-hour virtual workshop for mentors of doctoral and postdoctoral research trainees and a companion research study of workshop participants and their research trainees.
In the workshop, attendees learn best practices and strategies for helping trainees develop their scientific speaking and writing skills. It focuses on practical mentoring techniques that can be implemented immediately and are effective, efficient, and accessible to mentors, including tools to:
- Accommodate trainee linguistic differences
- Set expectations and structure
- Give actionable feedback on SciComm
- Develop strategies to increase trainee SciComm engagement
The companion research study investigates the translational effectiveness of the workshop in increasing mentoring skills in SciComm and the degree to which those mentoring skills translate to positive trainee outcomes. Confidential pre- and post-workshop surveys for mentors and up to 5 of their doctoral- or postdoctoral-level trainees are delivered online. Compensation for trainees is offered after completion of both surveys; compensation for mentors is offered after completion of the post-workshop survey only. The study is funded by the National Institute of General Medical Sciences (R25 GM125640; Cameron and Chang, MPIs) and has received approval from the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center Institutional Review Board (Protocol #2018-0206).
Upcoming SCOARE Workshops and Registration
The workshop is currently being offered online as two 3-hour sessions and is limited to 20 attendees. In order to participate in the workshop, you must be able to attend both sessions (6 hours total).
To receive more information about upcoming workshops, including the link to register, or to request an online or in-person workshop for your institution, please email the SCOARE Team at SCOARE@mdanderson.org.
Other Communication Workshops
Other training workshops we can provide for your team include:
For faculty:
- Facilitating SCOARE (open to former SCOARE workshop participants):
- A train-the-trainer workshop that prepares attendees to facilitate the SCOARE workshop, including organizing and leading a SCOARE workshop, SCOARE workshop content, and how to implement a SCOARE workshop at your home institution. You must be a former SCOARE workshop participant (faculty or admin) in order to train to facilitate the workshop.
- Length: 3 days (in-person)
- Participants: 15 maximum
- Scaffolding a Research Project Narrative:
- A hands-on workshop for faculty on how to guide trainees through identifying and articulating the core elements of their written or spoken research reports.
- Length: 2 hours
- Participants: 20 maximum
- Mentoring Science Communication:
- A workshop on integrating public communication of science skills into training and mentoring.
- Length: 2 hours
- Participants: 20 maximum
- Organizing an Elevator Speech Program and Competition:
- A workshop on how to organize a scientific elevator speech program and competition at your institution.
- Length: 3 hours
- Participants: 15 maximum
For trainees
- Scaffolding a Research Project Narrative:
- A hands-on workshop for students and trainees on how to identify and articulate the core elements of their written or spoken research reports.
- Length: 2 hours
- Participants: 20 maximum
- Scientific Elevator Speech Workshop:
- A hands-on workshop for students and trainees on how to create scientific elevator speeches.
- Length: 3 hours
- Participants: 30 maximum
Contact
For more information about the Scientific Communication Advances Research Excellence workshop, contact us at SCOARE@mdanderson.org. This mailbox is checked several times daily. For more information about other communication training workshops we offer, contact Carrie Cameron, Ph.D., PI/PD, at CCameron@MDAnderson.org.
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Translating mentoring interventions research into practice: Evaluation of an evidence-based workshop for research mentors on developing trainees’ scientific communication skills (2022)
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Identifying Effective Mentors in Scientific Communication: A Latent Profile Analysis of Mentor Beliefs (2021)
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Mentoring Barriers, Expected Outcomes, and Practices in Scientific Communication: Scale Development and Validation (2020)
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The role of scientific communication in predicting science identity and research career intention (2020)
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Assessment of Scientific Communication Self-efficacy, Interest, and Outcome Expectations for Career Development in Academic Medicine (2016)
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The Role of Scientific Communication Skills in Trainees’ Intention to Pursue Biomedical Research Careers: A Social Cognitive Analysis (2015)
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The Development of Scientific Communication Skills: A Qualitative Study of the Perceptions of Trainees and Their Mentors (2013)
Investigator Profiles
Carrie Cameron, Ph.D. (Associate Professor, Behavioral Science), specializes in cross-cultural communication, linguistics, & language training.
Shine Chang, Ph.D. (Director, CPRTP and Professor, Epidemiology, MD Anderson Cancer Center), specializes in cancer prevention training, cancer epidemiology, & retention of women & minorities in academic research careers.
Hwa Young Lee, Ph.D. (Program Manager, CPRTP), specializes in educational psychology & quantitative analysis.
Cheryl Anderson, Ph.D. (Senior Research Scientist, CPRTP), specializes in social psychology & psychometric measurement of survey instruments.
Erin Dahlstrom, Ph.D. (Program Manager, Behavioral Science), oversees project coordination and management for SCOARE and other research programs.
Christine Bell, M.S. (Associate Researcher & Evaluator, LEAD Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison), is the SCOARE workshops’ external evaluator.