Telling the stories of our natural world
10 weeks
12651294
This Program is Perfect For
- Undergraduate and graduate students, researchers, or professionals in STEM fields who want to learn how to better communicate their work to journalists and the public.
- Public information officers and public relations professionals who are interested in sharpening their science communication skills.
- Journalists, influencers, and other media professionals looking to expand their coverage into science and related fields.
Translate the complexity of science into clear ideas
Designed for a broad beginner audience
Science writers help people better understand the mysteries, discoveries, and challenges of our natural world. In this asynchronous virtual program students learn the skills they need to prepare for numerous jobs in communications and science such as public information officers, science journalists, science advocacy, aquarium outreach, museum interpreters and STEM professionals. In the Science Communication Online Certificate Program, a spinoff of the UC Santa Cruz Science Communication program, professionals learn to improve their science communication skills through two sequential courses.
Enroll now to get $100 off!
Early enrollment pricing of $650 ends August 15. Beginning August 16, enrollment returns to full price at $750.
Science Communication I: Sharing science with a general audience
- Public relations
- Journalism
- Social media
- Artificial Intelligence
Intro to Science Communication II: Building trust and making an impact (Coming soon)
- Equity and diversity
- Conflict management
- Policy writing
- Freelancing
Participants will gain a thorough introductory overview of science communication tenets and practices. By the end of the program, students will have learned how to communicate complex scientific ideas clearly and succinctly to a broad audience.
Our curriculum partner
The Science Communication Online Certificate Program has been carefully developed by the UC Santa Cruz Science Communication Program, which offers an in-person master’s degree program. The science communication master’s degree program has produced more than 350 professional science writers since 1981, many of whom work as reporters and editors at the nation’s top science magazines, online news services, research agencies, universities, and medical centers.
Courses
1. Science Communication Courses
SCSV.800
$750
You may enroll in this offering at any time.
Sep. 29 - Dec. 8, Tue, 12:01am - 11:59pm
- Online Traditional Complete online with instructor-set deadlines.
SCSV.800.(801)
Schedule
| Date | Start Time | End Time | Meeting Type | Location |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tue, 09-29-2026 | 12:01am | 12:02pm | Online Traditional | ONLINE |
| Tue, 12-08-2026 | 11:58pm | 11:59pm | Online Traditional | ONLINE |
Online Traditional courses have a structured learning environment and fixed deadlines. This course is largely self-study with instructor guidance and includes online learning modules, assignments, and/or quizzes. All course materials and assignments will be available on Canvas, our learning management system.
For this section, you must enroll by September 19th. Student access begins on September 29. All course work must be completed by 11:59 pm on December 8, 2026.
You will be granted access in Canvas to your course site and course materials approximately 24 hours prior to the published start date of the course.
Program director
Erika Check Hayden, B.S.
Director and Lecturer on reporting and writing science news, features and multimedia journalism
Hayden, the third director of the Science Communication program at UC Santa Cruz, worked for the news section of Nature (2001–2016), reporting on biomedical research, emerging technologies, scientific trends, and ethics in science. Her reporting on the Ebola crisis from West Africa received multiple national honors.
She majored in biology at Stanford University, where she began her journalism career by writing for the Stanford Daily and the Stanford Alumni Magazine. She later worked at Newsweek in New York, covering science, medicine, and breaking news.
Instructor
Kimberly Hickok, M.S.
Science Writer, UC Santa Cruz Science Communication Program Assistant
A graduate of the UC Santa Cruz Science Communication Program, Kim Hickok is a science writer and editor who specializes in creating engaging stories and easy-to-digest content for a wide variety of clients, from national news outlets to private research institutions.
She has written for Science, Popular Mechanics, NBC News, Inside Science, Live Science, Space.com, California Local, Bay Nature, Stanford University, CZ Biohub, Symmetry, and the SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, among others. She is also the part-time program assistant for the UC Santa Cruz Science Communication program where she helps with external partnerships and mentors students.
