Karl Kjer: Carving Out Your Career in Freelance Science Writing

Longtime academic, professor and researcher Karl Kjer has worked in freelance science writing for just over a year. A knowledgeable and respected entomologist and taxonomist, Kjer has turned what is a considerable skillset and base of knowledge into a successful writing and editing career; producing high-quality scholarly work that both informs and engages his clients’ readership on a daily basis.

Diving into the world of freelance science writing, as Karl Kjer knows, isn’t always easy, though there are ways to make carving out your niche a little less challenging.

Build Out a Website

Give potential clients an online destination for examining your credentials and portfolio. This allows clients the opportunity to get to know you a little better, and makes their decision-making process a little easier.

Get to Know Your Clients

Before introducing yourself to a potential client or making a pitch about a potential story idea, be sure to better know the publication, the typical stories/articles it features, and the readership it looks to attract.

Karl Kjer: What is the Hodson Graduate Alumni Award?

Karl Kjer is a highly-respected member of the scientific community. Currently a sought-after science writer and editor, Kjer has contributed a great deal to the fields of entomology, phylogenetics and systematic biology over the course of his career; has been a stand-out professor and researcher at the university level; and has been an instrumental part of such projects as the Trichoptera Barcode of Life Database and the 1KITE Initiative.

Now retired from academia, Karl Kjer was honored to have received the 2016 Alexander Hodson Alumni Award; an honor intended to recognize outstanding alumni of the University of Minnesota Department of Entomology on a yearly basis. The award’s namesake, Dr. Alexander C. Hodson, served as head of the Department from 1960 to 1974, and is credited with playing an instrumental role in the official change of the Department’s name to Entomology, Fisheries, and Wildlife.

Dr. Kjer is proud to be a University of Minnesota alum, having earned his PhD in Entomology at UM in 1992.

Karl Kjer: Many Professional Contributions

Karl Kjer is a noted member of the scientific community. A retired university professor and longtime academic, Kjer has contributed much in terms of how information is collected, analyzed and categorized in the field of insect phylogeny, particularly through such efforts as the 1KITE Initiative and the Trichoptera Barcode of Life Database. He currently offers his expertise as a freelance science editor and writer.

Karl Kjer: What is Phylogenetics?

Karl Kjer has been a recognized and respected member of the scientific community for more than 20 years. A noted molecular biologist, entomologist and taxonomist, and former professor at such research institutions as the University of California and Rutgers University, Kjer has contributed much to is respective fields over the years, particularly in regard to the area of Insect Phylogeny.

A major contributor to such research and information collection and analysis projects as the Trichoptera Barcode of Life Database and the 1KITE initiative, Karl Kjer has long worked with colleagues to generate a phylogeny of Trichoptera. This effort is, in large part, what led to the development of the 1KITE initiative, which has provided collaborators the opportunity to study the transcriptomes of more than 1000 insect species across all known insect orders.

As one who has made significant contributions to the field of insect phylogeny, Karl Kjer is well-versed in the importance of phylogenetics as a field of study. An examination of the relationships and evolution of different species and groups of species over time, phylogeny is used to develop, in essence, phylogenetic trees which map out how particular species and orders have evolved throughout history, and to utilize that roadmap to better understand where species, groups and life as a whole may be progressing.

Though it may often be confused with taxonomy, phylogenetics is its own distinct field of study, bot methodologically and logically. 

Karl Kjer, now a scientific consultant and freelance science writer and editor, maintains strong interest in the research of such fields as morphological evolution, entomology and phylogenetics.

Karl Kjer: Tips for Aquarium Beginners

Karl Kjer: Tips for Aquarium Beginners from Karl Kjer

Karl Kjer: Taking a Look at Biodiversity

Karl Kjer has been a noted member of the academic and research communities for much of the last 20 years. A recognized entomologist, taxonomist and molecular biologist who’s work includes such notable projects as the 1KITE initiative and major contributions to the Trichoptera Barcode of Life Database, Kjer has made considerable waves in insect phylogeny and trichopteran systematics throughout his career.

As Karl Kjer knows, better understanding the variety of life on the planet, or, as it’s commonly called, biodiversity, is key not only to obtaining a more comprehensive picture of how all organisms are connected and have evolved over time, but to the development and advancement of technologies, processes and innovation that will provide the human species a healthier and more sustainable future.

Karl Kjer has long worked on collecting information on and understanding the rich biodiversity existing across the insect family, in part at least, because of the practical applications such research may one day have in terms of improving life for human beings, and, in essence, all life across the planet.

By cataloging and analyzing the rich diversity of insect life at the molecular level, it may indeed be possible to better understand and develop ways to better protect and preserve water resources, contribute to climate stability, breakdown and absorb pollution and so on. Advancements in economic and environmental development may in fact hinge on the creation of a more comprehensive roadmap of the planet’s biodiversity, how it evolved and where it seems to be headed in the not-too-distant future.

Karl Kjer has been a member of the Entomological Society of America since 1986. He is currently a freelance science editor and writer.

Karl Kjer: Academic Writer

Karl Kjer is an award-winning molecular phylogeneticist who holds a Master of Science and a Ph. D. in Entomology, both from the University of Minnesota.

He is a co-founder of 1KITE, the 1,000 Insect Transcriptome Evolution Project, and he has over 4,700 citations as an author. Karl Kjer presently works as a freelance academic writer for Upwork.