Post Doctoral Researcher

The Ohio State University • Wooster, OH

8d • Onsite

About The Position

The position of Postdoctoral Scholar will conduct research under the general oversight of the principal investigator of the “Sentinel Sites to Quantify Decadal Change” a USDA-NRCS funded project. This project leverages historic NCSS and special project sampling by revisiting sampling locations to provide a time series spanning 70 years to examine change/variability of dynamic soil properties in dynamic agricultural landscapes. The goals of the project are to quantify change over time and also identify important processes relevant process-based modeling of dynamic soil properties. The postdoctoral researcher will be an integral part of the Soil and Environmental Mineralogy Lab and will be involved in soil sampling and descriptions in the field, data analysis, and publication and presentation of results. The position is intended for one-year duration with the possibility of extension based on performance and funding availability.

Requirements

• The incumbent will hold a doctoral degree or the foreign equivalent in one of the following disciplines: environment and natural resources, soil science, or a closely related field.
• The selected candidate must have completed the doctoral degree or all requirements leading to a doctoral degree at the start date of the appointment.
• In addition to doctoral degree, the candidate must also have completed at least 15 semester credit hours of graduate-level soil science courses.
• Research experience in soil sampling including sampling for soil organic carbon, soil morphology, and dynamic soil properties.
• Demonstrated experience in soil organic matter fractionation using size and density approaches.
• Demonstrated experience in infrared spectroscopy of soils and use of multivariate statistical models to predict soil properties.
• Experience in process-based models for estimating soil organic matter dynamics.
• Demonstrated experience in applying Bayesian statistical approaches to soil science questions.
• Knowledge in soils and soil management issues of Ohio and the greater Midwest region.

Responsibilities

• Within the predetermined research scope and methodology, conduct research experiments in the field of soil science.
• Collect and analyze data, including periodical/literature search and utilizing specialized skills in soil science to analyze the collected data.
• Participate/assist in manuscript writing for publication in scientific journals and/or presentations. May also assist in grant writing.
• Coordinate with graduate and undergraduate students and lab research technicians for project associated tasks as needed.
• Reporting of results including at extension, outreach, and professional meetings, conferences, and workshops.

Benefits

• Eligible Ohio State employees receive comprehensive benefits packages, including medical, dental and vision insurance, tuition assistance for employees and their dependents, and state or alternative retirement options with competitive employer contributions.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Education Level: Ph.D. or professional degree
• Number of Employees: 5,001-10,000 employees