Critical evaluation and analysis are essential skills of the scientific process which can be further developed through reading primary scientific literature. However, early stage scientists, including undergraduate and graduate students, often face barriers to reading and comprehending primary literature, which can make deeper investigation and evaluation of content even more challenging. To address this core skills gap, we designed a virtual journal club series. This series was designed to keep undergraduate students engaged following restrictions on in-person activities due to the COVID-19 pandemic. As this initiative was developed and led by graduate students, activities were designed with an emphasis on facilitating student-centered learning outcomes. We used several active learning techniques, including deconstruction of the main message through one-sentence summaries, collaborative student engagement via distinct team roles, conceptual diagrams to reinforce learning and develop communication skills through presentations, and word journals to encourage evaluation and synthesis of ideas across readings. We highlight how these strategies can be used for the design of literature-based training both inside and outside of the classroom. Further, we demonstrate that virtual journal clubs are an effective strategy for enhancing science literacy skills by facilitating student buy-in.