Brandeis Science Communications Lab

Write Like a Scientist: Writing a Successful Abstract 
Tuesday, July 18th from 1-2 pm

This SciComm Lab workshop will help science researchers prepare effective abstracts for scientific conferences. All Division of Science members were welcome and this workshop was particularly helpful for undergraduate researchers or scientists who are building an abstract from scratch. 

Effective Poster Design
Thurs. July 20th from 12:30-1:30 pm

This workshop, run by the Brandeis SciComm Lab, will cover best practices for creating a poster for events like SciFest. The goal of this workshop is to assist you in assessing, creating, and presenting a poster with the intention of gearing you up for your upcoming conference event. Open to all DivSci members! 

You Need a Notebook! A workshop on lab notebooks and how scientists use them.

Friday, June 9, 2023
11:00 am-12:00 pm
Shapiro Science Center GL 14

New to research and need to keep a lab notebook? Join the SciComm Lab for a workshop covering the importance and best practices of keeping a lab notebook. This will be a helpful workshop for summer undergraduate researchers (or any scientist who has looked at their old lab notebook notes and thought “what did I do?!”). RSVP here. 

Preparing your 3MT 
Thursday, March 9, 2023
4:00-5:30 PM ET

Are you competing in the 2023 Brandeis 3MT (3-Minute Thesis) Competition or just want to know how to communicate your research to a general audience in a concise manner? Join the Brandeis Communication Lab Fellows, Michael and Vikko, for a virtual workshop that will provide tips and best practices for communicating your research to a general audience in a concise manner and crafting a single supporting slide!

View Zoom Video Recording

Speed 3MT Reviews with Communication Fellows
Thursday, March 23, 2023 3:00-4:00 PM ET

Are you competing in the 2023 Brandeis 3MT (3-Minute Thesis) Competition and want feedback on your talk? Join the Brandeis Communication Lab Fellows for a speed reviewing session. Participants will get to practice their talk and receive feedback from multiple Comm Lab Fellows and leave ready to present their 3MT!

Crafting an Effective Statement of Purpose for Grad & Med School
Wednesday, November 9
4:00 - 5:00 PM
Shapiro Science Center LL16

This workshop, hosted by Fellows Amélie Chardac and Krystal Leger, guided you through the timeline and initial steps of submitting a strong graduate school or medical school application. This workshop focused on crafting an effective statement of purpose. 

• Write Like a Scientist: Writing a Successful Abstract
  Tuesday, July 19
  4:00 - 5:00 PM ET. This workshop, hosted by Fellows 
  
  Amélie Chadrac and Kathleen Maigler will help science researchers prepare effective abstracts for scientific conferences. All Division of Science members were welcome and this workshop was particularly helpful for undergraduate researchers or scientists who are building an abstract from scratch. 
• Effective Poster Design 
  Thursday, July 21 4:00 - 5:00 PM ET
  
  Join the SciComm Lab Fellows Alice Chou and Xiang Li for a virtual workshop focused on effective poster design. This workshop is for anyone who is creating a scientific poster for the first time or wants tips on how to spruce up their poster design. 

• Three Minute Thesis (3MT) event

  The SciComm Lab is partnering with Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS) to host Brandeis's first ever Three Minute Thesis (3MT) event. This is an opportunity for graduate students to win prizes for effectively communication their research in three minutes.

• How to Structure a 3-minute Talk
  Date: Thursday, March 3
  Time: 12 - 1 pm ET

  Are you competing in the 2022 Brandeis 3MT (3-Minute Thesis) Competition or just want to know how to communicate your research to a general audience in a concise manner? Join the Brandeis Communication Lab Fellows Michelle and Rob for a virtual workshop that will provide tips and best practices for crafting a research talk for a general audience! 

  View Zoom Recording

• Crafting a Slide for 3MT
  Date: Monday, March 7
  Time: 4 - 5 pm ET

  Are you competing in the 2022 Brandeis 3MT (3-Minute Thesis) Competition or just want to know how to compile a slide that communicates your research to a general audience in a concise manner? Join the Brandeis Communication Lab Fellows Jake and Krystal for a virtual workshop that will provide tips and best practices for crafting a single slide that communicates your research to a general audience!

  View Zoom Recording

• Speed 3MT Reviews with Communication Fellows
  Date: Tuesday, March 22
  Time: 12 - 1 pm ET
  

  Are you competing in the 2022 Brandeis 3MT (3-Minute Thesis) Competition and want feedback on your talk? Join the Brandeis Communication Lab Fellows for a speed reviewing session. Participants will get to practice their talk and receive feedback from multiple Comm Lab Fellows and leave ready to present their 3MT! 

• Demystifying the Senior Thesis
  Date: Wednesday, November 10, 2021
  Time: 6 - 7 pm ET
  The SciComm Lab wants to help you with your Senior Thesis! On Wednesday, Nov. 10th at 6 pm, SciComm Lab Fellows Kathleen and Krystal hosted a workshop for anyone working on a senior thesis at Brandeis. This virtual workshop covered some tips and tricks on submitting your proposal this semester and presenting your research next semester.
  View Zoom Recording
  
  
• Writing an Effective Statement of Purpose for Graduate and Medical Schools
  Date: Wed., October 27, 2021
  Time: 5:30 - 6:30 pm ET
  This workshop hosted by Fellows Xiang Li and Thalia Sass guided viewers through the timeline and initial steps of submitting a strong graduate school or medical school application. This workshop focused on crafting an effective statement of purpose.
  View Zoom Recording
  
  
• What is the SciComm Lab?
  Date: Friday, October 8, 2021
  Time: 4:00 - 5:00 PM ET
  Need help communicating science such as working on a senior thesis or approaching labs you want to join but don’t know where to turn? You need the SciComm Lab! On Friday, Oct 8 at 4 pm a virtual info session was hosted by Fellows Michelle Langton and Rob Keane. In this session, they introduced the Lab, discussed the services provided by the Brandeis SciComm Lab, and walked through an appointment - from scheduling to follow-up - so you can take advantage of this FREE resource on campus.
  
  
• Intro to the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship (GRFP)
  Friday, Sept 17
  11:00 AM - 12:00 PM ET
  Interested in learning about the fellowship and grant writing process? The SciComm Lab and the DivSci PreAward Group have partnered to host a workshop on fellowship writing for the prestigious (but attainable) NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP).
  View Zoom Recording

• Effective Poster Design 
  Wednesday, July 21
  4:00 - 5:00 PM ET
  SciComm Lab Fellows Jake Olson and Brad Stone hosted a one-hour workshop focused on effective poster design. This workshop is for anyone who is creating a scientific poster for the first time or wants tips on how to spruce up their poster design. 
  View Echo 360 Recording
  
  
• Write Like a Scientist: Writing a Successful Abstract
  Wednesday, July 14
  4:00 - 5:00 PM ET
  This workshop, hosted by Fellows Thalia Sass and Chris Konow, helped science researchers prepare effective abstracts for scientific conferences. All Division of Science members were welcome and this workshop was particularly helpful for undergraduate researchers or scientists who are building an abstract from scratch. 
  View Echo360 Recording
  
  
• You Need a Notebook!
  Friday, June 4
  3:00 - 4:00 PM ET
  This workshop, hosted by Fellows Tim Wiggin and Thalia Sass, covered the importance and best practices of keeping a lab notebook. This was a helpful workshop for summer undergraduate researchers (or any scientist who has looked at old lab notebook notes and thought “what did I do?!”). 
  View Echo360 Recording

• Talk So People Will Listen
  Wednesday, April 7
  4:00 - 5:00 PM ET
  This workshop hosted by Fellows Michelle Langton and Thalia Sass helped any Brandeis scientist who wants to learn how to present their research. Undergraduates working on their senior thesis and graduate students were highly encouraged to attend! 
  View Echo 360 Recording

• Elevator Pitch 
  Thursday, March 25
  4:00 - 5:00 PM ET
  A workshop by the SciComm Lab about creating and giving your elevator pitch. This workshop was hosted by Fellows: Claire Symanski and Kathleen Maigler. 
  View Echo360 Recording
  
  
• Specific Aims 1-2-3
  March 15, 2021
  11:00 AM - 12:00 PM ET
  In this workshop, SciComm Lab fellows Tim Wiggin and Jake Olson taught participants how to write the specific aims portion of a grant.
  View Echo360 Recording
  
  
• Applying for Brandeis Summer Science Research Opportunities.
  February 9, 2021 at 7:00 PM ET
  This workshop helped Brandeis undergrads apply for summer science research opportunities on campus. 
  View Echo360 Recording

• Writing Effective Science Abstracts, a SciComm Lab workshop.
  July 22, 2020 at 1:30 PM
  This workshop helped science undergrads prepare effective abstracts for science conferences. 
  View Echo360 Recording
  
  
• Using the Right Type of Graph for Your Data, a SciComm Lab workshop
  July 15, 2020 at 1:30 PM
  A SciComm Lab workshop on how to use the right type of graph for your data facilitated by Tim Wiggin and Srinivas Shandilya.
  View Echo360 Recording
  
  
• Writing Effective Personal Statements for Graduate and Medical Schools, a SciComm Lab workshop
  July 8, 2020 
  A SciComm Lab workshop on how to write effective personal statements for graduate and medical schools facilitated by Chris Konow.
  View Echo360 Recording 
  
  
• Graduate School -- How to Apply and What it's all About, a panel presented by MRSEC and the Diverse Brandeis Scholars
  June 17, 2020
  View Echo360 Recording
  
  
• Panel Discussion on How to Productively Work from Home, organized by the SciComm Lab.
  June 11, 2020
  An online panel presented by the SciComm Lab. Professor Anne Berry, graduate student Bradly Stone and other participants will share tips for productively working from home during the summer and address undergraduate questions and concerns.
  View Echo360 Recording
  
  
• How to Mentor-Up and Other Tricks on How to Succeed Over the Summer, a SciComm Lab workshop.
  June 3, 2020
  A workshop by the SciComm Lab about How to Mentor-Up and Other Tricks on How to Succeed Over the Summer, a SciComm Lab Workshop. Participants will learn how to take notes that track success and summarize meetings.
  View Echo360 Recording
  
  
• How to Read Papers Effectively and Efficiently, a SciComm Lab workshop. 
  June 2, 2020 
  In this workshop, SciComm Lab fellows Katie Kimbrell and Lishi Mohapatra will teach participants how to read scientific research papers effectively and efficiently.
  View Echo360 Recording

• Panel Discussion: How to Create Virtual Learning Experiences in the Sciences, presented by the SciComm Lab. 
  May 27, 2020
  A panel discussion for anyone (grads, postdocs and faculty) mentoring a science undergraduate at Brandeis. Bradly Stone, Katie Kimbrell and Tim Wiggin will share their experiences about what has worked and not worked for them in terms of mentoring in a virtual environment. 
  Panel Discussion. Notes.
  
  
• How to Facilitate an Undergraduate Journal Club, a workshop presented by the SciComm Lab
  May 28, 2020
  Running a journal club for undergraduates? Learn how to make it go smoothly by attending this SciComm Lab workshop facilitated by Katie Kimbrell.
  View Zoom recording. 
  
  
• Specific Aims 1-2-3: a Grant Writing Workshop
  January 16, 2020
  Hosted by Molecular Genetics Journal Club
  
  
• CommLab Poster Workshop for QBReC Undergraduates
  January 27, 2020
  Facilitated by Lishibanya Mohapatra and Janna Lowensohn

• Coffee Counsel - Secrets to Getting REU Funds Across the U.S.
  November 21, 2019
  Get paid to Science!  The Coffee Counsel and the SciComm Lab provided an opportunity for students to learn what makes a successful REU application.
  
  
• Visual Design
  October 25, 2019
  Janna is facilitated an Adobe Illustrator workshop for the NBIO 208 and NBIO 207 (Neuro communication course).
  
  
• Introduction to the NSF Graduate Research Fellowship (GRFP)
  September 25, 2019
  The SciComm Lab and the DivSci PreAward Group partnered to host an informational workshop on the prestigious NSF Graduate Research Fellowship Program. Those people who are US citizens, national or permanent residents and who are either senior undergraduates planning to attend graduate school or grad students in their first or second year have a shot at this program. Those attending the session learned what they could do to establish themselves as unique scientists and best candidates for this fellowship.  
  
  
• Science Talks - Talk So People Will Listen: Crafting an Effective Science Presentation
  September 11, 2019
  Talk So People Will Listen: Crafting an effective science presentation was open to people of all skill levels to help them give the best talk possible. This one-hour workshop taught people: to learn the assertion / evidence approach to presentations; how to curate their data to convince and engage an audience; and to practice what they have learned in a low pressure environment.