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Welcome to Marin Science Seminar.

We’re Back! Marin Science Seminar sessions and internships are back as of September 2022. We still meet at Terra Linda High School,  but in a new area:  the first floor Innovation Hub. Stay tuned and sign up for our newsletter to be the first to find out when new info. comes out. 

Since 2008 (with a hiatus during the COVID pandemic from Fall of 2020 through Spring of 2022), the Marin Science Seminar (MSS) has been providing free science events for teens & community in Marin County, California. The seminars include a presentation with question and answer period and are open to all. It takes place on scheduled Wednesday evenings each  semester at Terra Linda High School in San Rafael.

Speakers are STEM professionals, graduate students, and student researchers. Topics presented are in an area of the speaker’s expertise, geared to interested high school students and the general community.

We also offer science journalism and videography internships to Marin County high school students.

The Marin Science Seminars were founded and are run by Alfia and Art Wallace. They are supported by the San Rafael School District, and Terra Linda High School’s Academic Excellence Committee.

Calendar

Winter-Spring 2024 schedule. Flyer in Color and B&W: [Spr24-Color] – [Spr24-B+W]

Subscribe to our newsletter to be informed when new events are scheduled and when the internship application period is open. An archive of previous talks 2008 – present can be found here: MSS Calendar Archives (opens a new tab/window) 

All seminar dates are Wednesdays from 7:30 – 8:30 p.m. Download the extra credit form here.

WINTER – SPRING 2024

NEW SESSION  We have added a seventh session this semester on Wed. April 17th:  Code Blue to Code Chronic: Insights into Emergency Medicine with Steven Garcia, M.D. of Kaiser Permanente, San Rafael. Join us and learn! :) 

JANUARY

FEBRUARY

MARCH

APRIL

Previous semester

FALL 2023

Fall 2023 schedule. – Download .pdf schedule: [Fall23-Color] – [Fall23-B+W]

NEW DATE!  Previously scheduled for 11/8, rescheduled to 11/15: "Through the Fantastic Eyes of Frogs and Toads: How scientists study what frogs and toads see" with Rayna Bell (AWHS 2003) of California Academy of Sciences

SEPTEMBER

OCTOBER

NOVEMBER

DECEMBER

  • 1: Application period for Spring 2024 internship opens, pending availability.
  • 31: Online Spring 2024 Marin Science Seminar Internship applications due (pending availbility)

An archive of previous talks 2008 – present can be found here: MSS Calendar Archives (opens a new tab/window)

Contact

There are several ways to keep on top of what’s happening at Marin Science Seminar (and science events in Marin and the San Francisco Bay Area). Read below for how to get news from us, and to see a map of where we meet.

  • Our Contact Form: Use this to make suggestions, get on our email list, or to contact us for whatever reason.
  • Join our email list by filling out our contact form. Please let us know if you are a student, parent, teacher or other community member, and the school or institution with which you are affiliated. You can also give general feedback or suggestions there. Thanks.
  • Join the Marin Science Seminar Facebook page.
  • Watch past sessions on Vimeo
  • Follow us on Instagram
  • Join us on Twitter

Continue reading “Contact”

Interns

Winter-Spring 2024: The application period for the Winter-Spring 2024 semester is now closed. Applicants must have a Zoom interview by 5pm on 1/24 to be considered.

If you are a Marin County, California student who will be in grades 9-12 in the fall and would like to be considered for an internship next semester , please read the requirements below and submit your application. If interested, please start your application online (requirements below) and we will contact you to follow up.  Students should use their own email and contact info to apply.

Winter-Spring 2024 Timeline

January 1: We begin to process internship applications
January 20: Deadline to submit MSS internship application online
January 22: Deadline for final receipt of all internship materials
January 24: Internship decisions emailed out by midnight
January 31: First science seminar of 2024

Explore science & technology. Meet a wide variety of STEM professionals.  Gain experience for your resume and college applications. Develop a portfolio. Learn about many areas of science.

Internship Duties: MSS interns attend and assist with  6 Wednesday evening science seminars per semester (there are 12 per year) during which they meet the speakers and assist with various logistical duties. Session dates can be found on our calendar. Sessions take place at Terra Linda High School’s Innovation Hub during the school year. Interns arrive the evening of each session at 7 pm and are free to leave once breakdown is completed (between 8:30 and 9 pm). Specialty internships have additional duties and Zoom meetings during the school year. You can apply online at this link. More details on internship types and requirements below.


Internship Types & Requirements

Casual Track: AV/Event Planning/Art/Mixed: Develop event-management and/or social media management skills. Training provided. Must attend Zoom orientation and assist in person at all six sessions.  These types can also be done on project track (see below) if desired, which requires more time and work.

Application procedure: Fill out online application. Zoom interview.


Project Track: The following require additional application materials and internship requirements.

Science Journalism: Develop a science journalism portfolio. Blog on seminar topics, interview presenters via email. Receive training and feedback from a qualified mentor.   Journalism interns assist at all live seminars and attend six additional Wednesday or Thursday evening Zoom meetings per semester. Zoom orientation and wrap-up. Journalism interns receive  one individualized Zoom meeting during the semester.

Application procedure: Fill out online application. After being contacted by email, select and submit two separate samples of your writing. The samples should be at least 700 words each and do not need to be about science. At least one should be non-fiction.  Zoom interview.

Videography: Develop a science-related videography portfolio. Record, edit, and post 2D (and optionally 3D) video of sessions. Create and post teaser videos. Videography interns assist at all live seminars and attend 4-6 additional Wednesday or Thursday evening Zoom meetings per semester, depending on their progress. Zoom orientation and wrap-up. Videography interns receive one individualized Zoom meeting during the semester.

Application procedure: Fill out online application. After being contacted by email, select and submit two separate  samples of video that you have created (need not be science related, YouTube/Insta ok, editing only ok). Zoom interview.


Casual or Project Track:

Art/Photography: Develop a science-related art/photography portfolio. Take photos at sessions, create art related to session subject matter. Must provide three art samples (need not be science related) and must be able to attend and assist at the sessions. Application procedure and requirements are the same as for Casual if applying for Casual Track. If applying for Project Track, speak with Alfia about what that would entail.

Marin County School-to-Career Internship: Marin Science Seminar internships are potentially applicable to the MCOE StC internship which, when successfully completed, appears on a public school student’s official transcript. Students must apply separately for this internship at their school’s College and Career Center. Requirements are more time-intensive You can get StC internship application materials online or from your school’s School-to-Career representative, to whom they will need to be submitted. Your MSS mentor will also need to fill out forms and sign off on hours for the MCOE StC internship.

Marin County School-to-Career Partnership Info. (including names and emails of school reps)

Marin Science Seminar has been offering internships since 2012. Our past interns are now students at or graduates of Brown, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, CalTech, Chico State, Harvard, Humboldt State, MIT, Northwestern, Sacramento State, Samuel Merritt, Scripps College, Seattle University, Sonoma State, UC Berkeley, UC Davis, UC Irvine, UCLA, UC Santa Barbara,  UC Santa Cruz, University of Colorado – Boulder, and Wesleyan. 

 Start your application online now. 

Speakers

Since 2008 over 125 unique speakers have presented to local youth and community at the Marin Science Seminar. These speakers are STEM professionals and students who present on their particular area of expertise or study. If you’re interested in presenting, contact us here.

MSS Speaker Guide: This guide lets you know about the details of a Marin Science Seminar presentation including how to tailor your talk to a high school audience. Download .pdf (finally updated for 2022!)

Below is an list of MSS speakers, which is alphabetical by last name. Each includes a link to their MSS speaker page. Those in bold are slated to present in the current academic year. Continue reading “Speakers”