Rewarding, but poorly rewarded: Gendered narratives of science communication in the life sciences

Science communication (sci-comm) encompasses activities that promote scientific literacy, inform policy, and inspire future scientists. Despite its value, sci-comm is often considered less pretigious than research and other internal academic activities. In Australia, scientific organisations (e.g., learned societies) rely on members to perform a range of sci-comm activities, typically unpaid. In this pilot study, we surveyed 88 Australian life sciences organisations to examine who performs sci-comm and why. Most respondents were early-career women employed in university research positions. Participants largely agreed that organisational sci-comm brought limited career benefits and was often viewed as feminised or “care work” relative to their research roles. Yet, respondents also cited personal and professional gains and most wished to continue in such roles. Our findings suggest “invisible” sci-comm performed for scientific organisations is disproportionately undertaken by women at early career stages, with implications for career progression and gender equity in STEM.