Academic-journalism collaborative publishing research-based articles by academics for general audiences. Open to pitches from researchers and university staff only.

The Conversation is a unique collaboration between academics and journalists that in a decade has become the world’s leading publisher of research-based news and analysis.

Everything you read on our pages is created by academics and journalists working together, supported by a team of digital technology experts. Our professional editors work with academics to turn knowledge and insights into easy-to-read articles, and make them accessible to general readers.

All our work is free to read and free to republish under Creative Commons. We do this as a not-for-profit group guided by a clear purpose: to provide access to high-quality explanatory journalism that makes for better decision making.

We place a high value on trust. All authors and editors sign up to our Editorial Charter and Guidelines. Contributors must abide by our Community Standards policy and be commissioned by editors before embarking on a written project for The Conversation. We only ask authors to write on subjects on which they have expertise. Potential conflicts of interest must be disclosed.

The Conversation began in Melbourne, Australia, in March 2011, created and founded by Andrew Jaspan with the support of business strategist Jack Rejtman and the University of Melbourne Vice-Chancellor Glyn Davis. The UK edition launched in May 2013, followed by editions in the US (2014), South Africa and France (2015), Canada, Indonesia and New Zealand (2017), Spain (2018), and Brasil (2023). Pitches must go direct to these bureaux.

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Salary Range: $60,000 to $65,000<div><br></div><div>Experience: 0-3 Years</div><div><br></div><div>Educational qualifications: Bachelor's Degree</div><div><br></div><div>Reporting manager: Chief Partnership Officer</div><div><br></div><div>Benefits: 401(k) matching, PTO, sick days, health insurance, dental insurance, life insurance, parental leave, vision insurance, paid holidays</div><div><br></div><div>Works closely with: As an integral member of the University Relations team, the URC will work closely with the team and across the organization.</div><div><br></div><div>The Conversation U.S. (TCUS) is an independent, nonprofit media organization that publishes daily news analysis and commentary written by academics, edited by journalists and aimed at the general public. Our team of journalists works with academics across the U.S. to help the general public make sense of important news. We take our work seriously, but we also offer a fun and flexible work culture with great benefits and lots of opportunity to shine.</div><div><br></div><div>We will consider candidates in locations across the U.S. We currently have offices in Boston and New York and can offer a hybrid of in-person and work-from-home for candidates in those cities. </div><div><br></div><div>The Conversation is deeply committed to inclusion and diversity. We encourage members of traditionally underrepresented groups – including those who are Black, Latinx, Asian American, Native and LGBTQ or armed services veterans - to apply to join our team.</div><div><br></div><div><b>About the Position: University Relations Coordinator</b></div><div><br></div><div>The University Relations Coordinator supports The Conversation's partnerships with colleges and universities by managing member communications, events, data systems, and administrative projects. The role works closely with the University Relations team to strengthen relationships with member institutions, coordinate webinars and conferences, track organizational impact, maintain databases, and support editorial and outreach initiatives. Over time, the Coordinator will serve as a primary contact for a portfolio of member institutions, helping them maximize the value of their partnership with The Conversation through engagement, data insights, and best-practice sharing.</div><div><br></div><div><b>Key Responsibilities</b></div><div><ul><li>Support University Relations partner communications and member engagement activities.</li><li><span style="color: rgb(20 20 20/var(--tw-text-opacity,1));">Coordinate webinars and virtual events, including creating Zoom calendar invites, RSVP forms, and related communications.</span></li><li>Maintain Airtable databases, including the expert database and institutional records.</li><li><span style="color: rgb(20 20 20/var(--tw-text-opacity,1));">Assist with impact tracking, including taking the lead on print impact tracking and working closely with the impact lead on other impact initiatives.</span></li><li>Enter, maintain, pull, clean, and format data as needed.</li><li><span style="color: rgb(20 20 20/var(--tw-text-opacity,1));">Assist the University Relations Sr. Manager with all aspects of The Conversation's member events, including semi-annual member conferences and regional meetings.</span></li><li>In coordination with the University Relations Sr. Manager, lead special projects and programs, including member recognition initiatives and other engagement programs.</li><li><span style="color: rgb(20 20 20/var(--tw-text-opacity,1));">Create author profiles in the CMS and add institutions to Airtable and the CMS.</span></li><li>Monitor and respond to diversity and support email inboxes.</li><li><span style="color: rgb(20 20 20/var(--tw-text-opacity,1));">Assist with newsletter production, grant reporting, and other administrative duties as needed.</span></li><li><span style="color: rgb(20 20 20/var(--tw-text-opacity,1));">By the end of the first year, serve as the primary contact for an assigned group of member institutions, conducting virtual and hybrid sessions, maintaining regular communication with stakeholders, sharing best practices, reviewing member data, and helping institutions maximize the value of their partnership with The Conversation.</span></li><li><span style="color: rgb(20 20 20/var(--tw-text-opacity,1));">Coordinate with partner communications contacts, editors, and scholars at member institutions.</span></li><li><span style="color: rgb(20 20 20/var(--tw-text-opacity,1));">Assist editorial desks as requested, including photo work, editing, research, commissioning, and identifying scholars and topic experts from member institutions.</span></li></ul></div><div><br></div><div><br></div>

University Relations Coordinator

Thanks for your interest in pitching an idea to The Conversation. This page briefly explains our editorial priorities. You can then submit a pitch by following the link.<div><br></div><div><b>What types of stories are we looking for?</b></div><div><ul><li>The Conversation focuses on:</li><li>Timely, evidence-based analysis of issues making the news</li><li>Articles explaining new research and its significance for a non-expert audience</li><li>Timeless, plain English “explainers” of complex issues</li><li>We do not publish opinion or advocacy pieces. Before pitching, please consider a keyword search to read what we’ve published on your topic.</li></ul></div><div><br></div><div><b>Can you write for The Conversation?</b></div><div>Writers for The Conversation must be scholars or researchers affiliated with a college, university or research institution. PhD students can write for us about the topic of their research or can share a byline with a faculty advisor. Master’s students can share a byline on stories where a professor is the main author.</div><div><br></div><div>We screen authors for financial and other conflicts of interest and seek out contributors who can take an authoritative explanatory approach without advocacy.</div><div><br></div><div>We generally work with academics at U.S. universities. You can also pitch your article to editions of The Conversation in Africa, Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Indonesia, New Zealand, Spain, and the U.K.</div><div><br></div><div>Please be aware that we are only able to accept a small fraction of the pitches we receive. We do not publish articles written by people employed by think tanks or non-profit research groups.</div>

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