Job Description
The Virginia Tech National Security Institute (VTNSI) was formed in 2021 with the aspiration to become the nation’s preeminent academic organization at the nexus of interdisciplinary research, technology, policy, and talent development to advance national security. The Institute grew from the Hume Center, which was launched in 2010 thanks to an endowment from Ted and Karyn Hume. VTNSI is a national leader in advancing security and resilience through innovative and applied research, empowering…
the next generation of experts, and building strategic alliances to address evolving national security challenges. We bring together exceptional interdisciplinary faculty, unique research infrastructure, and deep partnerships with industry and government sponsors to execute impactful research and development.
The Spectrum Dominance Division seeks a Research Assistant Professor, Research Associate Professor, or Research Professor at its office in Blacksburg, Virginia. The Spectrum Dominance Division (SDD) within VTNSI is home to 30 full-time faculty researchers with focus areas in electrical engineering, computer engineering, computer science, and applied mathematics. SDD’s portfolio reaches across all aspects of the radio frequency transmit/receive chain, including antenna and phased array design, baseband waveform design, and receiver design. SDD houses domain expertise in SDR development, AI/ML applied to the radio frequency (RF) spectrum (i.e., RFML), SIGINT, RADAR, cellular, electromagnetic materials, cognitive radio, and additive manufacturing. The hiring rank of this position will be based on the candidates' background and experience.
While engaging in cutting-edge RF research, SDD has a particular focus on TRL 3-6 R&D, acting as the bridge from fundamental research on campus to prototypes for government and commercial sponsors. A particular strength is real-time RF system development leveraging in-house FPGA, GPU, and SDR platforms. Importantly, SDD has successfully transitioned multiple capabilities for real-time RF machine learning, automotive cybersecurity, and radar threat warning models.
Validation of SDD products is accomplished in VTNSI’s state-of-the-art 5,000 sq. ft. of wireless testing and lab spaces as well as the Counter-UAS Testing and Research Center (CTRC), between them housing SDR testbeds, two RF anechoic chambers, and high-end measurement equipment (e.g. spectrum analyzers, vector network analyzers, etc.) supporting bands up to 110 GHz. These capabilities complement a nearly $10M investment in secure computing infrastructure, housing expansive GPU and CPU clusters.
Motivated applicants are sought to help continue to build SDD’s radio frequency portfolio and will be expected to:
- Lead the direction and technical execution of sponsored programs to achieve stated sponsor deliverables.
- Disseminate program outputs into technical documents, publish peer-reviewed academic papers, and/or open-source codebases/datasets/etc.
- Support business development efforts to secure new sponsored research programs.
- Support program execution as needed.
Additionally, applicants will have the opportunity to:
- Mentor undergraduate student teams engaged in experiential learning programs.
- Obtain a courtesy appointment in a relevant academic department to:
- Co-advise Master’s and PhD students alongside tenured faculty within relevant academic departments.
- Occasionally teach relevant courses within the department.
Required Qualifications
- An earned Doctorate degree in Electrical Engineering, Computer Engineering, or related field.
- Evidence of high potential for excellence in research and development as demonstrated through peer-reviewed publications and/or open-source codebases.
- Scholarship and funding credentials that support the rank of either research assistant professor, research associate professor, or research professor.
- Proficiency with the software/hardware tools germane to the applicant’s field of research.
- Demonstrated ability to work as a member of a team in scoping and executing research projects.
- Given the nature of the research conducted and the requirements from federal sponsors, the candidate must be a U.S. citizen.
- Ability and willingness to obtain and maintain a security clearance.
Preferred Qualifications
- Active security clearance at the TS/SCI level.
- Experience writing grant and contract proposals.
- Experience serving as principal investigator on research grants and contracts (required for ranks of research associate professor and research professor).
- Interest and/or experience in working effectively with academic faculty, staff and student populations.
- Experience with research programs supporting defense and intelligence community sponsors.
- Experience with research programs involving communications system prototype development and demonstration, with an emphasis on 5G/6G/O-RAN protocols, radio frequency artificial intelligence and machine learning, software-defined radios, and digital signal processing.
- Experience or technical expertise in counter-UAS technologies including detection, tracking, and identification, as well as mitigation or UAS countermeasures using communications and/or RADAR signatures.
Overtime Status
Exempt: Not eligible for overtime
Appointment Type
Restricted
Salary Information
$130,000 - 200,000; comensurate with experience and research professorial rank offered
Hours per week
40 hours per week
Review Date
August 13, 2026
Additional Information
Due to the nature of the Institute's work, all candidates must be US citizens and have the ability to obtain and maintain a security clearance.
The successful candidate will be required to have a criminal conviction check.
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