Research Scientist I – Marine Robotics

Virginia Tech • Suffolk, VA

7h

About The Position

The Center for Marine Autonomy and Robotics (CMAR) at Virginia Tech is seeking a hands-on Research Scientist to develop and operate advanced marine robotic systems. The role designs, develops, integrates, tests, and deploys electrical and software systems for autonomous underwater vehicles (AUVs) and other marine robotic platforms. Work spans embedded electronics and firmware, power and communications systems, sensors and actuators, onboard computing, robotic software, and system-level integration.

The Research Scientist works with faculty, research staff, graduate students, industry partners, and government sponsors to develop and demonstrate new marine robotics capabilities. The position contributes to sponsored research from initial design and development through laboratory testing, field deployment, and demonstration. It also involves technical documentation, research reporting, proposal development, and dissemination of results through technical presentations and scholarly publications.

The position requires U.S. citizenship to access and handle Controlled Unclassified Information (CUI), as well as the ability to obtain and maintain a U.S. government security clearance. A criminal conviction check is required. The role is a restricted appointment, exempt from overtime, with a salary of $90,000–$120,000, commensurate with experience, and a 40-hour workweek.

Requirements

• Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, Robotics, Computer Science, or a closely related engineering discipline; alternatively, a bachelor’s degree with at least five years of post-bachelor’s experience.
• Experience designing, developing, and testing robotic systems for marine or similarly challenging environments, including software and electrical subsystem development, integration, and testing; embedded systems, microcontrollers, and onboard computers; hardware, software, and electrical systems integration; and field deployment, operation, and testing.
• Experience with relevant robotic-systems technologies, including C++, Python, MATLAB, or other relevant programming languages; Ubuntu or similar Linux distributions; ROS, ROS2, or comparable robotics frameworks; Git or comparable version control; serial communications, Ethernet, CAN, or other common robotics communication protocols; and motor controllers, actuators, sensors, power electronics, battery systems, and communications systems.
• Demonstrated ability to work independently and collaboratively within multidisciplinary engineering and research teams.
• U.S. citizenship.
• Ability to obtain and maintain a security clearance.

Nice To Haves

• Experience designing printed circuit boards and electronic systems.
• Experience developing embedded firmware for microcontrollers.
• Experience designing unmanned underwater vehicles.
• Experience planning and executing field deployments of unmanned underwater vehicles.
• Experience with robotic perception, planning, control, localization, or other autonomous-system capabilities.
• Record of peer-reviewed scholarly publications.
• Experience working on federally sponsored research projects or collaborating with industry or government research partners.
• Experience mentoring graduate or undergraduate student researchers.
• Strong communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Design, develop, integrate, test, and deploy electrical and software systems for AUVs and other marine robotic platforms.
• Work across embedded electronics and firmware, power and communications systems, sensors and actuators, onboard computing, robotic software, and system-level integration.
• Collaborate with faculty, research staff, graduate students, industry partners, and government sponsors to develop and demonstrate marine robotics capabilities.
• Contribute to sponsored research projects from initial design and development through laboratory testing, field deployment, and demonstration.
• Prepare technical documentation and research reports.
• Support proposal development.
• Present and publish research results through technical presentations and scholarly publications.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Mid Level