Senior Naval STEM Outreach Specialist – ONR Support

Hunatek•Herndon, VA

2d•$80,000 - $95,000•Onsite

About The Position

We are seeking an experienced Senior Naval STEM Outreach Specialist to support the Office of Naval Research’s Naval STEM outreach mission. This position will develop and promote integrated outreach campaigns that increase awareness of Department of the Navy STEM internships, scholarships, education programs, and career opportunities. The primary audiences for these campaigns are high school students, college students, parents, educators, and community organizations. The specialist will use social media, digital communications, websites, email, presentations, printed materials, and in-person events to connect these audiences with programs such as the Science and Engineering Apprenticeship Program (SEAP), Naval Research Enterprise Internship Program (NREIP), SMART Scholarship-for-Service Program, Naval Horizons, and other Naval STEM initiatives. This is not solely a traditional writing or editing position. The successful candidate will be an audience-focused marketer and communicator who understands how to plan campaigns, develop compelling content, select effective communication channels, engage students, and use performance data to improve outreach results. The specialist must also be able to translate scientific, technical, and program information into accessible and engaging messages for students and other nontechnical audiences. Relevant experience must include demonstrated experience in marketing, outreach, public relations, or communications campaigns and may also include experience in digital communications, social media, content development, science communication, or editing. The position requires collaboration with ONR personnel, naval laboratories and warfare centers, technical experts, program managers, educators, outreach partners, and event teams. Travel to approximately 10–20 outreach events annually is required and may include occasional multi-day, evening, or weekend activities.

Requirements

U.S. citizenship.
Bachelor’s degree in marketing, communications, journalism, public relations, a STEM field, or a closely related discipline, with at least five years of relevant professional experience; or Master’s degree in one of these fields, with at least two years of relevant professional experience.
Relevant experience must include one or more of the following areas: marketing, outreach, public relations, digital communications, social media, content development, science communication, editing, or a closely related field.
Demonstrated experience developing or supporting marketing, communications, or outreach campaigns.
Professional experience creating content for social media or other digital channels.
Demonstrated ability to communicate scientific, technical, educational, or program information to students or other nontechnical audiences.
Strong writing, editing, proofreading, presentation, and verbal communication skills.
Experience coordinating content or campaigns with multiple stakeholders.
Ability to communicate professionally and confidently with students, families, educators, technical experts, government personnel, and community partners.
Ability to manage multiple assignments, deadlines, reviews, and campaign schedules.
Ability to work independently, exercise sound judgment, identify outreach or communication needs, and recommend solutions with limited day-to-day direction.
Willingness and ability to travel to approximately 10–20 events annually.
Proficiency with Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, Outlook, SharePoint Online, Teams, and Excel.
Current SECRET clearance or the ability to obtain and maintain the required clearance within the timeframe established for the position.

Nice To Haves

Experience marketing internships, scholarships, education programs, career opportunities, or other programs to high school or college students.
Experience supporting federal government, Department of Defense, or Department of the Navy programs.
Experience supporting STEM education, workforce development, internship, scholarship, or student outreach programs.
Familiarity with SEAP, NREIP, SMART, Naval Horizons, NDSEG, or similar STEM programs.
Experience developing social media campaigns designed to engage students or young adults.
Experience with social media scheduling, monitoring, analytics, or content-management tools.
Experience developing short-form video, graphics, photography, student testimonials, or other visual content.
Experience working with scientists, engineers, researchers, or technical program managers.
Experience representing an organization at conferences, career fairs, educational events, or community outreach activities.
Experience working within formal content-review, branding, accessibility, public-release, or Government approval processes.

Responsibilities

Develop and implement integrated marketing and outreach campaigns to increase awareness of and participation in Naval STEM programs.
Promote internship, scholarship, education, and career opportunities to high school students, college students, parents, educators, and community organizations.
Develop and lead assigned outreach and marketing initiatives from planning through execution, measurement, and post-campaign assessment, coordinating with program leadership and stakeholders to keep activities on schedule and aligned with program objectives.
Develop campaign strategies aligned with program objectives, application periods, recruiting priorities, and outreach events.
Identify and segment priority audiences and tailor communications based on audience interests, age, education level, and stage in the application process.
Recommend the most effective combination of social media, email, web, print, presentations, partner communications, and in-person outreach for each campaign.
Develop campaign schedules, editorial calendars, content plans, and communication timelines.
Coordinate outreach campaigns with program application deadlines, conferences, career fairs, student competitions, and other recruiting activities.
Track campaign reach, engagement, referrals, event participation, applications, and other relevant performance measures.
Analyze campaign results and audience feedback and recommend improvements to future outreach activities.
Develop social media strategies and content that engage high school and college students and increase awareness of Naval STEM opportunities.
Create and manage social media content calendars in coordination with program stakeholders.
Write platform-appropriate social media posts, campaign messages, calls to action, student-focused content, and program announcements.
Identify opportunities to use photographs, graphics, short-form video, student stories, intern testimonials, and other visual content.
Adapt messages and content for different social media platforms and audience groups.
Monitor engagement and use available analytics to evaluate content and campaign performance.
Support updates to websites, digital program information, email communications, and other online outreach channels.
Ensure digital communications comply with applicable branding, accessibility, public-release, privacy, and Government approval requirements.
Translate scientific, technical, and program information into clear, accurate, and engaging content for students, families, educators, and other nontechnical audiences.
Write, edit, and review website content, program descriptions, fact sheets, flyers, brochures, presentations, newsletters, email campaigns, social media content, talking points, video scripts, and event materials.
Interview scientists, engineers, program managers, interns, educators, and other stakeholders to develop stories and promotional content.
Develop student and intern success stories that demonstrate the value and impact of Naval STEM programs.
Ensure communications are accurate, consistent, audience-appropriate, and aligned with approved Naval STEM messages and branding.
Coordinate content review, approval, revision, and release with appropriate program and Government stakeholders.
Represent Naval STEM programs at conferences, career fairs, student competitions, family STEM events, naval air shows, and other outreach activities.
Engage directly with students, families, educators, and community organizations to explain available programs and encourage participation.
Deliver presentations and provide clear, accurate answers to questions about Naval STEM opportunities.
Coordinate communications and promotional activities with naval laboratories, warfare centers, schools, colleges, universities, professional associations, and community partners.
Work with event coordinators to ensure campaign messages, presentations, displays, handouts, and digital content support event objectives.
Gather feedback, participation information, photographs, success stories, and other content from outreach events for future communications.
Maintain editorial calendars, campaign schedules, content trackers, stakeholder contact lists, approval records, and outreach metrics.
Prepare summaries of campaign activities, audience engagement, event results, lessons learned, and recommended improvements.
Manage multiple campaigns, assignments, deadlines, and stakeholder reviews simultaneously.
Use Microsoft 365 applications—including Word, PowerPoint, Outlook, SharePoint Online, Teams, and Excel—to support content development, collaboration, tracking, reporting, and document management.