Rachel Robertson
Science Communicator
About Me
I am a science communicator for Oregon State University’s College of Engineering. I translate technical research for a broad audience through writing, video and podcasts. My work passion is Engineering Out Loud, a podcast I cofounded, host and produce with my talented and hilarious coworkers.
I have always loved writing, although I did not initially pursue it as a career. In college I followed my interest in psychology and received a B.S. with honors at the University of Oregon. Following graduation, I worked for many years as a research coordinator in cognitive psychology research labs where my responsibilities often included writing and editing scientific articles and chapters.
While employed as a researcher at Emory University, I became a regular freelance writer for “Emory Report,” the faculty and staff newspaper, writing mostly science articles and profiles. For several years I continued working as a freelance writer for a variety of business magazines in Washington State. When I moved to Corvallis, Oregon, I began writing for Oregon State University where I honed my science writing skills.
Work Experience
2013 - Today
Strategic Communications Coordinator
School of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Oregon State University
2001 - 2013
Freelance Writer
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Academic: Oregon Agricultural Progress, Terra Magazine), Emory Report
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Business: Skagit County Business Pulse, Skagit Valley Herald: Home Accent, and Northwest Business Monthly Extension Express
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General media: Atlanta Parent, OSU’s Extension Express, Newsletter of the Emory Women’s Center, North Cascade and Skagit Valley Traveler’s Guide, Northwest Horse Source, and Take Root Willamette Valley.
1989 – 2006
I managed research programs in cognitive psychology, especially language processing, at the University of Oregon, University of Wisconsin-Madison, and Emory University in Atlanta. These positions included research activities such as designing experiments, creating materials, testing adult and child subjects, managing and analyzing data, and supervising undergraduate and graduate students. I also wrote and edited newsletters, scientific articles and grants. I designed, wrote content and maintained websites for research labs. I created graphs and figures for publications and did page layout for books, newsletters and brochures.
Education
1988
University of Oregon
Bachelor of Science with Honors, Psychology
Undergraduate Thesis: Robertson, R. R. W. (1988). Moral development of children: Relating behavior and reasoning. Undergraduate honors thesis, University of Oregon, Eugene, OR.