Knight Science Journalism Fellowship Program

Knight Science Journalism Fellowship Program

Applications are open for Knight Science Journalism Fellowship Program at MIT to support a global community of dedicated and thoughtful journalists specializing in science, health, technology and environmental reporting.

KSJ@MIT is designed to recognize journalists who demonstrate a high level of professional excellence and accomplishment as well as a long-term commitment to their craft. Journalists from all countries compete on an equal basis and are encouraged to apply.

Knight Fellowship Programs and Activities

• Seminars: Fellows meet regularly for seminars with top researchers and media professionals.
• Field Trips: The program organizes several trips each year to locations of special interest to science and technology writers. Past destinations have included the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and the Marine Biological Laboratory in Woods Hole, MA, the Jackson Laboratory in Bar Harbor, ME, and the Harvard Forest in Petersham, MA.
• Digital Media Training: The number of storytelling channels open to journalists is multiplying, and we want our Fellows to return to the workforce with more technical skills than they had coming in. We offer workshops in various technologies, including video and audio capture, still photography, digital editing, data journalism and podcasting.
• Workshops: With support from the Kavli Foundation, the program organizes an annual workshop on an essential issue in science journalism, which may range from policy-based questions to basic science backgrounders, such as a series of lectures from leading nanotechnology researchers. These workshops are open to the larger science writing community on a competitive basis but all Knight Fellows are offered automatic admission to these workshops if they choose to attend.

Stipulations

To be awarded a Fellowship, selected applicants must agree to the following requirements:

• To reside full-time in the Boston/Cambridge area for the academic year: August 15, 2017 through May 15, 2018.
• To attend field trips, seminars, and required training sessions arranged by the Knight Science Journalism Fellowship Program at MIT.
• To participate in at least one science course per semester.
• To produce a well thought out research project during the academic year.
• To refrain from outside professional work during the Fellowship, unless written permission has been granted by the Director.
• International candidates must obtain a valid visa from the U.S. State Department after being awarded the Fellowship; the visa is normally sponsored by MIT.

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible for a KSJ@MIT Fellowship, applicants must:

Be full-time journalists, whether on staff or freelance. Part-time writers or producers are not eligible.

Have at least three full years of experience covering science, technology, the environment, or medicine.

Be reporters, writers, editors, producers, illustrators, filmmakers, or photojournalists. This includes work for newspapers, magazines, television, radio, and digital media.

For more information please visit the Link