Specialist, News & Editorial

American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO); Alexandria (VA); Hybrid; USD 93,000 - 114,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Open Leave Policy

Paid Family Leave

401(k): 7.5% Employer Contribution

Employee Assistance Program

Fertility and Family Forming

Healthcare Concierge

Flexible Spending Account(s)

Healthcare Savings Account

Job summary

American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) is seeking a Specialist, News & Editorial to join the Integrated Communications and Marketing (ICM) team in a hybrid role based in Alexandria, VA.

The successful candidate will research, write, edit, and manage content for patient audiences and scientific materials, including ASCO Meeting abstracts, and coordinate with the American Cancer Society on content collaborations.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience in communications, journalism, or related field.
• 4–5 years writing in healthcare, medical, or patient education.
• Ability to write in plain language for patient audiences.
• Proficiency with Microsoft 365 apps: Word, Teams, SharePoint, OneDrive.

Responsibilities

• Research, write, edit, and update patient-facing content.
• Manage the content review process and identify expert reviewers.
• Support development of press releases and patient summaries for scientific abstracts.
• Apply journalistic standards including accuracy, readability, SEO.
• Identify news stories aligning with partner objectives and calendars.
• Demonstrate strong client service with external partners.
• Manage the volunteer advisory committee communications and surveys.
• Contribute to crisis content management for pandemics and disasters.
• Ensure accessibility and readability for broad audiences.
• Manage freelance writers and other vendors.

Skills

Plain-language writing

Editorial skills

Content management

Communication skills

Project management

Crisis communications

Vendor management

Education

Bachelor’s degree in communications, journalism, or related field

Tools

Word

Teams

SharePoint

OneDrive

Job description

Are you interested in making a world of difference in cancer care?

Cancer strikes more than 10 million people worldwide each year. As the leading medical society representing doctors who care for people with cancer, the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) is committed to conquering cancer through research, education, and promotion of the highest quality care.

Who we are:

ASCO is a flexible, high-performance membership organization where employees collaborate to support our mission through evidence, care, and impact. Together with Conquer Cancer, the ASCO Foundation, we foster a culture that prioritizes customer-centricity, emphasizes teamwork, and commits to quality. Our culture, ASCO Works – Our Way of Working, has long enabled workplace flexibility and embraced technology to help us achieve balance. To learn what it’s like to work at ASCO, click here.

Total Rewards:

At ASCO, we offer a competitive and comprehensive total rewards package. Our compensation philosophy and structure ensure that pay remains market-based, tied to performance, and aligned with our core values. The hiring salary range displayed accounts for a broad spectrum of factors, and the final offer will depend on an evaluation of the selected candidate's experience, training, and specialized skill sets.

In addition to base pay, this position is eligible for our robust total rewards package, which includes health, vision, and dental insurance, a 401(k) with generous contribution, health and wellness benefits, family forming benefits, education support program, generous leave, and much more!

Who we are looking for:

ASCO is in search of a high-performing Specialist, News & Editorial to join our Integrated Communications and Marketing (ICM) department. The successful hire will research, write, edit, and serve as content manager for patient-facing and scientific content and materials, including summaries of research presented at ASCO Meetings. The Specialist will also successfully manage the development and review of content in support of the collaboration between ASCO and the American Cancer Society (ACS).

This position is hybrid with a primary location at our headquarters in Alexandria, VA. The hire must reside within 75 miles of our headquarters.

Responsibilities

• Research, write, edit, and update patient-facing content, as assigned, working with team leaders and organizational partners and volunteers.
• Manage the content review process for their portfolio, which includes identifying potential expert reviewers from ASCO’s volunteer advisory committee, reaching out to reviewers and following up, and monitoring, tracking, and reporting on the status of all portfolio content.
• Support development of press releases and patient-facing summaries for scientific abstracts from ASCO Meetings to highlight cancer advances to a variety of audiences.
• Comply with contemporary journalistic standards, including accuracy, timeliness, readability, and search engine optimization (SEO) techniques, while also meeting internal deadlines and quality expectations.
• Identify news stories that support content partnership needs and expectations, including with ACS, and stay aligned with external partners’ objectives and editorial calendars.
• Demonstrate strong client service skills when working with external partners.
• Support the management of ASCO’s volunteer advisory committee, including but not limited to developing and delivering communications, responding to questions, planning and participating in engagement sessions, and conducting surveys to gather input.
• Participate in time-sensitive responses involving crisis communications or other fast-paced content management, such as patient-facing content related to pandemics, environmental disasters, international affairs, and ASCO Guidelines.
• Contribute to ongoing team effort to maintain and enhance readability to ensure all of ASCO’s patient-facing resources and content are accessible to a broad audience.
• Manage and engage with freelance writers and other vendors as needed.

Required Education and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree, preferably in communications, journalism, or a related field, or equivalent years of experience
• At least 4 to 5 years of experience writing in a healthcare, medical, or patient care/education environment
• Strong command of plain-language and patient-friendly styles of medical/science writing
• Proficiency with Microsoft 365 applications required, including Word, Teams, SharePoint, and OneDrive

Preferred Education and Experience

• Experience working with project and content management systems
• Experience in the nonprofit sector, a professional medical society, oncology, or other healthcare organizations
• Experience with using AI tools related to content development or operational efficiency
• Excellent communication skills with the ability to clearly convey and receive information with all professional levels and diverse groups
• Ability to understand and simplify complex scientific content for general audiences
• Strong interpersonal skills and relationship-building skills
• Self-starter with a commitment to work within a fast-paced editorial team
• Excellent time management skills with a proven ability to meet deadlines, prioritize, and multitask
• Strong content management skills, excellent organizational skills and attention to detail, and the ability to monitor, track, and report on status of content reviews
• Flexible with the ability to adapt to changing conditions

ADA/Physical Requirements

Must lift up to 25 lbs.

Extended periods seated or standing at a desk

High use of computer and other office technology equipment

Travel

1 to 5 days/year

Compensation

This is an exempt position. The hiring salary range for this position is $93,300-$113,800 annualized.

The range displayed reflects the minimum and maximum annualized salary ASCO expects to provide for a new hire for the position across the U.S. We thoughtfully determine and design offers based on the selected candidate’s relevant experience and qualifications.

• Open Leave Policy
• Paid Family Leave
• 401(k): 7.5% Employer Contribution
• Employee Assistance Program
• Fertility and Family Forming
• Healthcare Concierge
• Flexible Spending Account(s)
• Healthcare Savings Account
• Disability and Life Insurance

Applications are accepted and reviewed on a rolling basis. The job posting will remain active throughout the candidate application evaluation process.

The American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) is an Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) employer. It is the policy of the Company to provide equal employment opportunities to all qualified applicants without regard to race, color, national origin, sex, and religion.