Job no: 530204
Position type: Staff Full Time
Benefit Status: Benefited-Union
Campus: UMass Lowell
Department: Envir Earth&Atmos.Sciences
Salary: See posting section for salary range details.
Applications Open: Sep 02 2026
Applications Close: Open until filled
General Summary of Position:
The Department of Environmental, Earth, and Atmospheric Sciences at the University of Massachusetts Lowell invites applications for a postdoctoral research associate to join an NSF-funded project investigating physical transport and mixing processes at the groundwater-surface water interface in shallow coastal environments. Coastal groundwater is an important source of freshwater, nutrients, carbon, and other dissolved constituents to estuaries and the coastal ocean. The research combines field observations with high-resolution computational fluid dynamics (CFD) modeling to improve understanding of the hydrologic and oceanographic processes that govern fluid exchange in these environments. The successful candidate will assist with field investigations in coastal settings and lead CFD modeling. The postdoctoral researcher will work in a collaborative environment spanning hydrology, fluid dynamics, and coastal science. The position provides opportunities for scientific leadership, mentoring, conference participation, fieldwork, and development of open, transferable modeling tools. Candidates are encouraged to contact Dr. James Heiss (james_heiss@uml.edu) with any questions.
Essential Job Duties:
- Lead the development, testing, and application of CFD simulations of density-dependent transport and mixing in dynamic coastal surface waters.
- Develop reproducible workflows for model setup, high-performance computing, sensitivity analysis, and visualization of large simulation datasets.
- Participate in field investigations, including installation, maintenance, and recovery of oceanographic and hydrological instrumentation.
- Lead peer-reviewed manuscripts and conference presentations; collaborate with faculty, graduate and undergraduate researchers, and external project partners.
Minimum Qualifications (Required):
- A PhD in Engineering, Hydrology, Oceanography, Physics, Geoscience, or related field.
- Proficiency in scientific programming, cluster computing, and CFD modeling.
Preferred Qualifications:
- Experience developing, evaluating, and applying CFD (e.g., OpenFOAM) models to investigate coastal and nearshore hydrodynamics.
- Broad understanding of coastal oceanographic processes.
- Experience working in a collaborative environment.
- Experience with script-based computational workflows using Python or MATLAB.
- Demonstrated ability to conduct surf zone, hydrologic, or hydrogeologic field investigations.
Special Instructions to Applicants:
Only current UML Employees within the Grants & Contracts (MTA/GRACE) bargaining unit will be considered during the first 10 business days of the posting. All other candidates will be considered after that period.
This position is full-time, benefited and in the Grants & Contracts union in grade PD. Anticipated salary not to exceed $64,000 with formal range: Minimum: $50,000, 25th quartile $56,500 and Midpoint: $63,000.
This position is contingent upon funding, and is for one year contingent on productivity, successful performance and the availability of funding.
Review of applications will begin immediately and continue until the position is filled; however, the posting may close when an adequate number of qualified applications is received.
Please include a resume and cover letter to include a description of relevant experience and research interests with your application. Names and contact information of three references will be required during the application process.
Organization
Working at University of Massachusetts Lowell
Located in the culturally and historically rich Merrimack.
Valley in northeast Massachusetts, the University of Massachusetts Lowell is a vibrant research university that offers its 13,000 students more than 120 bachelor’s, master’s, professional master’s and doctoral degree programs. Exciting opportunities in experiential and service learning, scholarship, community engagement, and international partnerships can be found across the Colleges of Fine Arts, Humanities and Social Sciences; Engineering; Management; Sciences; School of Health and Environment; and Graduate School of Education.
This is a time of unprecedented growth and opportunity at UMass Lowell. Student enrollment and retention have improved annually. Research funding and alumni giving have increased significantly and the campus has embarked on the construction of two new academic buildings: the Emerging Technologies & Innovation Center and the Health & Social Sciences Building.
The University of Massachusetts Lowell is committed to increasing diversity in its faculty, staff, and student populations, as well as curriculum and support programs, while promoting an inclusive environment. We seek candidates who can contribute to that goal and encourage you to apply and to identify your strengths in this area.
Mission Statement
The mission of the University of Massachusetts Lowell is to enhance the intellectual, personal and cultural development of its students through excellent, affordable educational programs. The University seeks to meet the needs of the Commonwealth today and into the future and supports the development of sustainable technologies and communities through its teaching, research, scholarship and engagement.
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