Post Doctoral Scholar

The Ohio State University

4d • Remote

About The Position

A postdoctoral position in the Department of Food, Agricultural and Biological Engineering within Ohio State University's College of Food, Agricultural, and Environmental Sciences. The role supports federally and state-funded research projects advancing agricultural ecosystem science and evaluating the environmental benefits of conservation practices. The successful candidate will contribute to interdisciplinary research on agricultural ecosystem processes, environmental outcomes, and ecosystem services, including modeling, data analysis, and integration of field, watershed, and regional datasets.

The postdoctoral scholar will collaborate with a multi-institutional team of university, government, and research organization partners. The position also offers opportunities to participate in Extension and stakeholder outreach activities with OSU Extension faculty and partners. The candidate is expected to publish research, contribute to proposals and grant writing, prepare Extension materials, present findings to scientific and stakeholder audiences, and mentor students.

This is a term appointment, renewed annually subject to available funding and satisfactory performance. Remote work may be approved for candidates residing within the United States, subject to university review and applicable employment considerations; remote arrangements are not guaranteed. Occasional travel may be required for project meetings, field activities, stakeholder engagement, Extension programming, and conferences. The position is supervised by Dr. Asmita Murumkar, Assistant Professor and Ecosystems Services Field Specialist.

Requirements

• Earned Ph.D. by the start date in Agricultural Engineering, Ecological Engineering, Environmental Engineering, Civil Engineering, Hydrology, Soil Science, Environmental Science, or a closely related field.
• Demonstrated experience with ecosystem, hydrologic, biogeochemical, or watershed models and decision-support tools used for field and watershed assessments.
• Knowledge of agricultural conservation practices and their environmental impacts.
• Evidence of scholarly productivity, including peer-reviewed publications.
• Experience contributing to research proposals and grant development.

Nice To Haves

• Experience with carbon accounting models and decision-support tools such as COMET-Farm and related ecosystem-service assessment tools.
• Familiarity with machine learning, artificial intelligence, and large-scale environmental data analysis.
• Experience integrating environmental monitoring data with modeling frameworks.
• Experience working with interdisciplinary research teams and stakeholder-driven projects.
• Proficiency in programming and data analysis languages such as R, Python, MATLAB, or FORTRAN.
• Strong quantitative and analytical skills.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively in multidisciplinary teams.
• Experience mentoring students and junior researchers.
• Experience communicating modeling and watershed assessment results to scientific, technical, and public audiences.

Responsibilities

• Develop, evaluate, and apply ecosystem and environmental models.
• Assess environmental outcomes and ecosystem services, emphasizing carbon sequestration, greenhouse gas emissions, and water quality.
• Conduct data mining and analysis using machine learning and artificial intelligence approaches.
• Integrate field, watershed, and regional-scale datasets to support ecosystem service assessments and decision-making.
• Lead data collection, analysis, and modeling efforts.
• Publish research findings in peer-reviewed scientific journals.
• Contribute to proposal development and grant-writing activities.
• Develop Extension publications and outreach materials for diverse audiences.
• Present research findings at national and international scientific conferences, stakeholder meetings, and professional workshops.
• Mentor graduate and undergraduate students involved in project activities.
• Collaborate with a multi-institutional research team and participate in Extension and stakeholder outreach activities.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Education Level: Ph.D. or professional degree