How to be a UFOlogist

INVOLVED IN UFO STUDIES

Many people want information on how to become involved in the study of UFOs (often called “Ufology”). What subjects should they learn, and what special training is most appropriate in order to becomeinvolved with either UFO investigation or research. Further, students wonder whether there is any full-timeemployment available with major UFO organizations to study the UFO phenomenon.

The answers to these questions are straightforward, but first we want to provide some necessarybackground that will help you understand the current situation in the field. The study of the UFO phenomenon hassuffered over the years from a lack of funding from either government agencies or private foundations. As aconsequence, all UFO organizations have relied almost exclusively on contributions from the public for theirsupport, some on membership fees.Regrettably, while public donations are most welcome, public donations have usually been barely adequateto maintain an office and pay for some clerical help, but—with rare exceptions—not enough to pay full-timeinvestigators. And almost no grant money is available for scientists and other professionals to do research projects.The basic reason why no adequate funding is available is that only a tiny minority of professionalscientists and academics consider UFOs to be a legitimate topic for scientific study.

Most are convinced that UFO reports are only a miscellany of mistaken observations of prosaic objects or phenomena, and all the controversythat surrounds them is based on nothing but a popular myth. At bottom, the pervasive problem is the failure ofimportant opinion makers in society to recognize that the skeptical position on UFOs is not well founded; in fact, itis strongly contradicted by a large body of well-established facts (see the white paper on skepticism).As a consequence, all those who study UFOs seriously do so as an avocation—an unpaid activity wepursue as professionally as possible, given the lack of resources. UFO investigators come from all walks of life, andpeople with a wide variety of backgrounds have made important contributions.

However, their UFO work did notadvance their careers, especially for those academics who have become involved. Others in the field—policemen,teachers, businessmen, engineers, librarians, writers, and computer specialists—are less troubled by conflictsbetween their UFO work and their jobs.Of course, the lack of funding could change at any time, but it has been true for decades and the future istotally unpredictable. The current deadlock could go on for many more years, or some dramatic events ordiscoveries could bring urgent attention to and support for UFOs overnight. Still, it is best that you plan to do your UFO work as a volunteer.

UFOs as an Avocation If you are ready to get involved on a volunteer level in the field, what should you study? Experience tellsus that analysis of UFO reports is a strongly cross-disciplinary endeavor. The study of the UFO phenomenon can bebroadly grouped into two categories:· Investigation of UFO sightings themselves in the field· Study of the reports and/or witnessesWithin these categories are numerous separate tasks. The field investigation of sightings involves many skills.Witnesses need to be interviewed in a manner that will provide the most reliable sighting details. Physical tracesamples may be taken using careful protocols, with measurements and photographs of the site.

Governmentagencies often will be contacted to obtain supplementary information (weather data, radar records). Reports mustbe carefully written to compile an accurate database for future use.From the standpoint of field investigation work and report writing, backgrounds in interviewing, detectiveor police work, journalism, social work, and similar disciplines are valuable. However, many excellent fieldinvestigators have had other training. It is quite possible to learn to be a good field investigator, and there arehandbooks that provide advice and training.The study of the data from UFO reports includes many possible areas of evidence.

UFOs are sometimestracked on radar, so that electronics and other technologies related to those fields are important. Electromagnetic(EM) effects or gravitational disturbances frequently have been associated with UFOs. In EM effects cases,knowledge of the affected vehicle or power system becomes important, along with principles of electromagnetism.2If there are physical traces on the ground, or vegetation is affected, then knowledge of biology, soil properties,chemistry, and botany can be important. Photographs of UFOs must be studied by those knowledgeable in thatfield.Other researchers have attempted to find patterns in the UFO data, such as where and when UFOs appear,their common characteristics, and any correlations between these data.

Here, a background in statistics, databases,or intelligence analysis would be useful.For those interested in the physics of the UFO phenomena, relevant knowledge can come fromaeronautics, atmospheric physics, and optics, among other disciplines.In most UFO cases, there is no physical evidence, just the witness reports. Consequently, witnesses havebeen the subject of several studies, as we try to see who is more likely to see a UFO, and whether certain peoplemore commonly make specific types of reports. Here, social scientists have much to offer. Perceptual psychologistshave, for example, studied the difficulties of observing something unusual in the sky or on the ground, and haveplaced limits on what can be perceived.What all of the above implies is that almost any area you decide to study can be applied someday to thestudy of UFOs. For this reason, we strongly urge you get your degrees or training in areas that you find interesting and in which you would like to seek employment.

Undoubtedly, you will need to make a living doing something besides stu

dying UFOs.You may find this advice rather unsatisfactory because it is not very specific. But actually, it should beencouraging that almost anything you learn can be applied to UFO studies. This gives you great freedom to choose.And if there are specific areas of UFO study that you find intriguing, our advice above should provide someguidance about where you should gain further education.As part of your schoolwork (especially in college), you can seek opportunities to do term papers, scienceprojects, honors projects, and theses related to some aspect of UFOs. With a little imagination, the possibilities areendless.UFO Studies & ApprenticeshipTo a great extent, it will be up to you to become expert in the UFO field, since there is no formal trainingin the subject. Whatever field of study or studies you choose to pursue in your formal education, there are manyinformal training and learning opportunities available. You should try to contact one of the major UFOorganizations to see if you can become involved as a volunteer while in school. (Your schoolwork should comefirst, and we normally advocate waiting until you are in college to become a volunteer) .

The organizations can putyou in contact with someone in your area who is a member and/or investigator. You can begin to learn about thefield from someone who is directly involved. You can possibly apprentice as an investigator, attend discussiongroups, and help with other tasks.Volunteering can lead to obtaining a personal mentor who can help guide you through the many pitfallsoften encountered in ufology (rumors, gossip, unfounded speculation, poor science). You will want some advice onwhat to read and who is reliable. This is because there are no standards in the field of UFO studies; literally,anyone can declare him or herself a “ufologist,” although those of us who treat the field seriously only get involvedwith like-minded people.

In your free time outside of school or during vacation time, you can pursue personal studies of UFOsightings and/or human reactions to them. A good place to start is to examine the web sites of UFO groups andprominent advocates, many of which contain links or articles on various aspects of the subject. You should try toread widely in the UFO subject, learning about its history as well as famous cases, the government involvementwith UFO investigation, earlier investigators and researchers, and, of course, what we do know about the UFOphenomenon.The reading list and web sites below are a place to begin your education. If you have additional questionsafter reading this white paper, you can contact one of the UFO organizations for further advice. We wish you allthe best in getting involved in this most intriguing field.3Web SitesHere are some websites that have reliable information on the UFO phenomenon. There are many more than listedhere, and you can find several other good sites on the CUFOS website links page.

Center for UFO Studies (CUFOS) http://www.cufos.org/

Fund for UFO Research (FUFOR) http://www.fufor.com/

Mutual UFO Network (MUFON) http://www.mufon.com/

National Investigations Committee onAerial Phenomena (NICAP)http://www.nicap.dabsol.co.uk/

Project 1947 (UFO history) http://www.project1947.com/

UFO Research Coalition (URC) http://www.ufoscience.org/

Bernard Haisch, Ph.D. (astronomer) http://www.ufoskeptic.org/

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