Knight Science Journalism Program

The Knight Science Journalism Program offers fellowships for mid-career journalists who cover science, technology, medicine, or the environment for the general public. The program offers fellowships to reporters, writers, editors, producers, illustrators, and photographers.

Journalists who are selected spend one academic year on campus, taking courses at MIT and Harvard, participating in twice-a-week seminars with top researchers, visiting laboratories, going on field trips, and pursuing independent projects. They also do a research project, building expertise in a particular area of interest, which may lead to publication in the program's highly regarded science magazine, Undark, or help create a book proposal, video, podcast or other final product.

Science journalists face some of the most difficult challenges of reporting. They must convey complex, technical subjects in direct, simple terms to readers and viewers who demand—and have a right to—accurate, fair, and clear information about scientific developments that affect not only their views of the world, but their lives and livelihoods. Reporting both the news and its implications is further complicated by the naturally advancing complexity of science.

Knight fellowships are designed to help journalists face these challenges by widening their knowledge of science and technology and deepening their understanding of how these fields interact with society. Through both classes and through a series of seminars and workshops, the program provides an opportunity for journalists to re-examine old ways—and develop new ways—of practicing their craft.

The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation is the principal sponsor of the fellowships, the only nine-month, mid-career program reserved for science journalists. The fellowships are part of MIT's Program in Science, Technology, and Society.

For further information, contact Deborah Blum, program director.