Research Professor - STARR PI

Research Professor - STARR PI

College/School/Unit: Jackson School of Geosciences

Department:

Posted: Mar 10, 2026

Apply By: Open until filled

Description

General Notes
This is for an in-person position at the J.J. Pickle Research Campus in North Austin. The candidate for this position will be the leader of the State of Texas Advanced Resource Recovery (STARR) program.

Purpose
The State of Texas Advanced Resource Recovery (STARR) program is seeking a new Principal Investigator to lead the program, coordinate subprojects, manage research personnel including postdocs and students, and design and conduct original research on topics relevant to the economic development of energy and environmental resources within the State of Texas.

The State of Texas Advanced Resource Recovery (STARR) program is funded by the State of Texas and is part of the Bureau of Economic Geology at the Jackson School of Geosciences. The mission of STARR is to conduct geoscience and engineering research to increase the production and profitability of earth resources, including oil, natural gas, hydrogen, geothermal, and minerals within the State of Texas. The program also aims to encourage responsible economic development, support education, and promote environmental stewardship.

In this position the candidate will:

• Work closely with the Director, who is also the State Geologist of Texas, to design and implement research initiatives relevant to the state.
• Design and lead research on energy or environmental topics relevant to the State of Texas. This includes organizing core workshops and training sessions both in-house and in collaboration with local professional societies.
• Supervise a multidisciplinary team of researchers, including geoscientists, engineers, and geospatial specialists. This involves active engagement in annual performance evaluations, setting performance targets, and providing continuous feedback and adjustments throughout the year.
• Monitor the financial health of the program in collaboration with the directorate.
• Interact and engage with small Texas operators to define field studies that impact the STARR matrix. This includes documenting projects and securing letters of support from operators to be included in the STARR biannual report.
• Collaborate with other Principal Investigators to identify areas of synergy.
• Actively participate in local and regional technical events and conferences to promote the STARR mission and present technical results in collaboration with researchers.
• Publish research results in peer-reviewed publications and present findings at relevant conferences locally and regionally.

Responsibilities

• Provide scientific and strategic leadership for the STARR program as PI, including setting the research vision, defining priorities, and ensuring delivery of high impact, industry relevant outcomes. Oversee program execution to ensure projects are appropriately resourced, on schedule, and within budget.
• Lead and participate in original, publishable research as part of STARR, advancing innovative approaches to subsurface characterization and resource recovery while integrating expertise across disciplines and above and below ground
• Lead, mentor, and inspire a multidisciplinary research team, fostering a collaborative and high-performance research culture. Supervise staff, postdocs and students, promote professional development, and encourage cross-program collaboration within the Bureau of Economic Geology.
• Proactively engage with industry, state agencies, and external partners to define relevant research questions, co-develop projects, secure data, and align STARR research with evolving industry challenges and State of Texas priorities. Actively seek and build synergies with other BEG programs and external research organizations.
• Communicate research outcomes through presentations, reports, and peer reviewed publications; represent STARR and BEG to professional societies, sponsors, and stakeholders; and contribute to the visibility and impact of BEG's research enterprise.

Salary
$150,000+ depending on qualifications

Working Conditions

• May work around standard office conditions
• Repetitive use of a keyboard at a workstation
• Occasional weekend, overtime, and evening work to meet deadlines
• Occasional interstate, intrastate, and international travel
• Fieldwork as necessary

Qualifications

Required Qualifications
PhD in geosciences, petroleum engineering or related technical discipline. Five or more years work experience after PhD degree.

Preferred Qualifications
Fifteen or more years of experience in the oil and gas industry and/or academia, including demonstrated leadership of complex exploration, development, or research programs. Strong record of peer reviewed publications and success in securing competitive research funding. Proven ability to lead, inspire, and collaborate with interdisciplinary research teams.

In depth understanding of a geoscience or engineering field as applied to subsurface characterization and prediction using core, well log, seismic data or other methods. Familiarity with geophysical, petrophysical, reservoir engineering, and well engineering methodologies, as well as workflows for complex modeling of upstream petroleum systems. Experience applying subsurface characterization to emerging energy resources including geothermal, subsurface energy storage, or mineral evaluation is desirable.

Demonstrated expertise or familiarity in advanced data analytics and computational methods, including data driven modeling, machine learning, and/or artificial intelligence applied to large, complex geoscience or engineering datasets. Experience integrating traditional subsurface workflows with modern data science approaches is strongly preferred.

Effective communicator with a strong record of presenting technical results to scientific, industry, and government audiences. Demonstrated ability to proactively develop and sustain high level collaborations with industry, academic, and government partners

Application Instructions

Required Materials

• CV
• Letter of Interest
• Research Statement
• 3 references with contact information in a single document
• Final candidate should be prepared to provide at least 3 reference letters