Utah Scicomm Hackathon

Overview

The Utah SciComm Hackathon challenged graduate students across Utah to transform their scientific research into engaging, accessible communication pieces for general audiences. Participants developed original content - including comics, podcasts, short videos, infographics, and visual storytelling pieces - that conveyed their science in creative, relatable ways.

The Process

Over the course of two months, participants designed, refined, and submitted their projects.  Participants benefited from individualized feedback from experts in science communication. They received mentorship and feedback from a panel of postdoctoral fellows, faculty members, and media professionals, ensuring that their final products were both scientifically accurate and publicly engaging.

Projects were judged on clarity, creativity, accessibility, and scientific rigor using a structured scoring rubric. 

Six finalists were selected to present their work at the Utah SciComm Symposium.

For Educators

Interested in running your own SciComm Hackathon?

See For Educators for planning templates, sample rubrics, and timelines for hosting your own event.

Acknowledgements: This project was supported by the Research!America Public Engagement Content Awards and hosted at the Natural History Museum of Utah in partnership with the University of Utah.