"Scientist in Complex Systems"

Position Summary:

The UM6P Vanguard Center & UM6P’s School of Applied Sciences & Engineering invite applications for a Scientist in Complex Systems to support the Wicked Problems (WiP) program. This transdisciplinary position is designed for a researcher capable of bridging networks, feedbacks, and emergence across human, institutional, and physical systems. The ideal candidate will work with undergraduate students and faculty to analyze complexity across domains—from social and political systems to cities, ecosystems, and digital infrastructures—through both modeling and ethical inquiry.

Key Responsibilities:

• Guide student teams working on complex, interconnected systems across domains such as urban development, social behavior, strategic governance, education, migration, or resilience.
• Introduce and apply tools such as agent-based modeling (ABM), system dynamics, network analysis, game theory, and scenario planning.
• Facilitate modeling of feedback loops, adaptation, emergence, and collective behavior in real-world cases.
• Co-develop teaching modules and interactive simulations that explore decision-making, value trade-offs, and policy implications in complex environments.
• Support data-driven inquiry using large-scale datasets (social, geospatial, behavioral) and integrate empirical insights with theoretical models.
• Mentor students in producing publishable research, prototypes, and policy-relevant analysis grounded in complexity theory.
• Publish research and co-author student-led publications resulting from WiP investigations.
• Contribute to applied research motivated by the WiP investigations.

Required Qualifications:

• Ph.D. in Complex Systems Science, Computational Social Science, Applied Mathematics, Urban Systems, Network Science, Political Economy, or a related field.
• Demonstrated experience with computational modeling of complex adaptive systems (e.g., NetLogo, Repast, Python/ABM libraries, system dynamics tools).
• Familiarity with interdisciplinary modeling frameworks that integrate quantitative and qualitative dimensions of complex problems.
• Proven interest in education and student mentoring, particularly in open-ended, project-based settings.

Desirable Qualifications (at least two of the following):

• Experience in social data science (social networks, large-scale behavior, demographic/mobility data).
• Background in urban or regional systems modeling (e.g., housing, transport, energy, equity).
• Exposure to institutional design, governance, or public decision-making under complexity.
• Familiarity with policy analysis, ethics of innovation, and value-sensitive system design.
• Interest in participatory modeling, foresight methods, or simulation-based policy games.

Cross-Domain Impact Areas May Include:

• Climate adaptation and urban resilience
• Migration and demographic dynamics
• Inequality and access to public services
• Governance, diplomacy, and strategic foresight
• Education innovation and learning ecosystems
• AI, algorithms, and society