UCAR is excited to announce the opening for an Associate Scientist III with the Cooperative Programs for the Advancement of Earth System Science (CPAESS). This position will support NOAA Ocean Exploration’s (OER) mission through the collection, processing, and management of ocean exploration data. This position is part of a dynamic technical operations team and plays a vital role in conducting multidisciplinary scientific expeditions, including at-sea data acquisition aboard the Okeanos Explorer for 60–120 days per year. The CPAESS Associate Scientist III will contribute to high-quality geospatial and acoustic data products, help develop and maintain standard operating procedures, and mentor early-career interns during field deployments. The role also includes collaborative project work ashore, public data stewardship, and engaging with the broader scientific community through outreach and training efforts.
CPAESS serves the Earth System Science community in three distinct areas of service. We partner with federal agencies and businesses to hire critical scientific staff, enabling a more robust workforce. Through our scientific programs, we seek to edify new research with our postdoctoral programs, our visiting scientist and internship programs, along with our interagency support programs. We also help build the Earth system science community by convening and managing summer schools and institutes, conferences, and advisory committees.
Position Details:
Visa Sponsored Job:No
Relocation Assistance Eligible:No
Job Location: Silver Spring, Maryland
Position Type & Term:Full time, Regular
Compensation Range:
Hiring Range: $87,818 – $109,772
*Final salary and rates are based on education, experience, and skills relevant to the role.*
Application Notes
Application Deadline: This position will be posted until 11:59:59 p.m. MT on Wednesday, September 3, 2025. Applications will not be accepted past this date.
Required application materials (preferably in PDF Format):
- Resume
- Cover Letter – Please address how your skills and experience meet the needs of this position using the following prompts as guidance:
1. Describe experience processing or analyzing geospatial or acoustic data, including tools used and how your work contributed to project success.
2. Working aboard a vessel requires endurance, adaptability, and technical readiness. Share your experiences handling technical, environmental, and team-related scenarios on board a vessel at sea.
3. Part of this role involves mentoring interns and supporting outreach efforts. Elaborate on a time you trained or mentored someone (formally or informally) in a technical or operational skill, including strategies used and the outcome.
Work Location:
This position is open to candidates seeking in-person, hybrid (combination of in-person and remote), and/or fully remote opportunities.
UCAR requires ALL positions to be performed within the U.S., excluding U.S. Territories. CPAESS staff deployed to federal agencies must abide by their respective federal agency requirements concerning remote/flexible work arrangements.
Background Checks: Federal screens and UCAR background checks are conducted for candidates selected for hire. Learn more.
What You Will Do
Here is a summary of what one would expect to be generally responsible for in this role.
Key Responsibilities
Geospatial Data Processing & Hydrographic Analysis
Acquiring and processing mapping and environmental data using sonar systems, GIS tools, and related sensors.
- Process and quality control multibeam sonar and other acoustic data (e.g., single-beam, sub-bottom profiler), removing anomalies and ensuring fidelity across datasets.
- Apply geospatial tools (e.g., ArcPro, Qimera) to synthesize pre-cruise datasets and prioritize survey areas in under-explored regions.
- Maintain and organize data archives and databases to ensure continuity and accessibility of products and metadata.
- Generate data products post-cruise (e.g., bathymetric maps, water column visualizations, habitat maps, biodiversity analysis, story maps, web stories) for integration into NOAA and public repositories.
- Adhere to NOAA and partner protocols for data structure, naming conventions, and submission to national archives.
Ocean Mapping Operations & At-Sea Readiness
Leading watch shifts, supporting expedition logistics, and mentoring while at sea.
- Stand 12-hour watches at sea, ensuring system performance, troubleshooting issues with the chief scientist, and maintaining operational logs.
- Support ROV and CTD operations, including water sample filtering for eDNA analysis, assisting with biological and geological sample documentation and packaging, serving as an ROV navigator, and data logging.
- Train and mentor early-career mapping interns during expeditions, using standardized onboard procedures.
- Assist with collecting and logging environmental and acoustic data (e.g., sonar, CTD, eDNA, ROV data, and annotations).
- Ensure personal physical and mental readiness for offshore deployments totaling 60–120 days annually.
Systems Development, Planning, & Process Improvement
Managing data pipelines, contributing to planning processes, and developing procedures and tools to improve operations.
- Draft and update standard operating procedures (SOPs) in collaboration with onboard and shore-based teams, incorporating lessons learned and evolving technologies.
- Maintain structured wrap-up and post-cruise deliverables, including data synthesis, analytics, and open data reporting to enable follow-on science and ensure public accessibility.
- Support campaign planning and inter-expedition coordination through improved data packaging, reporting workflows, and resource documentation.
- Contribute to evaluations of new technologies and methodologies to optimize current mapping, ROV, sampling, and data collection operations.
- Identify opportunities for operational streamlining and work with the Technical Operations team to implement scalable improvements.
Science Communication, Collaboration & Knowledge Sharing
Sharing scientific knowledge through training, outreach, and community engagement.
- Lead or co-lead onboard training sessions for early-career interns or technicians using NOAA standard protocols.
- Participate in and represent the organization at interdisciplinary science conferences, trainings, and external planning meetings.
- Collaborate with scientists, engineers, and partner organizations to share knowledge on mapping, sampling, and ROV operational best practices.
- Develop public-facing educational and outreach products to promote NOAA Ocean Exploration’s mission and findings.
- Communicate project goals, timelines, and progress across diverse teams and partners through written documentation and verbal updates.
Who We’d Love To Join Our Team
Successful candidates will ensure their application materials speak to the following criteria:
Education & Experience
REQUIRED
- Bachelor’s (or equivalent) degree in a scientific discipline pertinent to an NCAR/UCAR scientific program (i.e., oceanography).
- 3- 5 years as an Associate Scientist II (or equivalent education/position) with evidence of considerable professional progress and substantial/relevant research experience.
PREFERRED
- Experience working in an offshore environment using ocean exploration tools with a focus on interpretation of deep-sea biology (e.g., ROV, uncrewed systems, multibeam and other acoustic sonars, and/or Conductivity-Temperature-Depth (CTD) instrumentation).
Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities
- Demonstrated skill and ability applying knowledge of geospatial data (e.g., GIS programs and tools, and acoustic mapping).
- Ability to meet physical requirements for being in the office and on a vessel, including the ability to lead 12-hour watch shifts at sea, seven days per week, while providing mentorship to a student intern assigned to the same shift as lead watchstander.
- Well-developed data management, organization skills, and a keen attention to detail and situational awareness.
- Strong interpersonal skills to enable working as part of operational teams, as well as a demonstrated ability to communicate effectively (verbally and in writing) with students, colleagues, and external partners.
- Demonstrated ability to lead training sessions while onboard the vessel and participate in training onboard.
- Well-developed communication of project planning and execution details.
Benefits Overview
UCAR affirms its commitment to employees through competitive benefits. In addition to medical, dental, vision, retirement, and life insurance, UCAR offers a variety of programs focused on work-life balance and professional, and personal development. These include:
- Tuition Assistance, time off allowance to attend classes, and other professional development opportunities
- UCAR contributes 10% of your eligible pay into your retirement account; 100% fully vested on day one
- Starting minimum accrual of 20 days of personal time off each year (prorated for less than full-time positions)
- 10 paid holidays
- 10 days of sick leave each year
- 12 weeks of paid parental leave
- Short-term medical leave paid at 100% of your regular salary
- EcoPass for local Colorado residents to use the Denver and Boulder-area transit system at no cost
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