Post-Doctoral Fellow - Department of Geology & Geography

The WVU Eberly College of Arts and Sciences' Department of Geology & Geography in collaboration with the United States Department of Agriculture Forest Service Northern Research Station is seeking a post-doctoral researcher to contribute to a research project focused on the use of terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) data for mapping and monitoring forest fire fuels and prescribed fire efficacy in the eastern United States.

About the Opportunity

The researcher will work within the remote sensing lab and under the supervision of a faculty member and Forest Service researchers on a project focused on developing techniques to extract fuel-related information from TLS data to support fire management.

We are seeking a candidate with expertise and interest in working with remotely sensed and spatiotemporal data, including TLS data, in the context of forestry and environmental management. The researcher will work towards developing and documenting fuel mapping workflows and publishing peer-reviewed scientific articles.

At WVU Research Corporation, we strongly believe in work-life balance and keeping time for things we love outside our work. WVU Research Corporation offers a comprehensive benefits package with a variety of options to suit your needs:

• 13 paid holidays (staff holiday calendar)
• Paid Time off (PTO)
• 403(b) retirement savings with a fully vested 3% employee contribution match, (Employees have the option of contributing an additional 1-3% of their earnings to the plan, which is also matched by the WVURC)
• A range of health insurance and other benefits
• Dependent Education Scholarship
• WVU Perks

What You'll Do

• Conduct terrestrial laser scanning (TLS) and geospatial data processing and analysis.
• Develop and document code.
• Prepare, write, review and submit academic manuscripts.
• Attend meetings and coordinate with other researchers.
• Conduct field work and coordinate research travel.
• Compile reports and track project progress.

• PhD in Remote Sensing, Forestry, Geography, Geospatial Science, Computer Science, Data Science, or a related field by August 2025.
• A minimum of six (6) months of experience in each of the following:
  
  
  
  • Experience applying machine/deep learning, other modeling methods, and data mining and visualization to applied problems and geospatial data.
  • Able to code in the Python or R languages (intermediate to advanced level).
  • Capable of developing documentation and manuscripts for submission to peer-reviewed academic outlet.
  
  
  
  
• Any equivalent combination of related education and/or experience will be considered.
• All qualifications must be met by the time of employment.

Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Experience working with geospatial data and spatial predictive modeling relating to forestry and forest fire mapping.
• Proficient in Python and R (intermediate to advanced level), with experience in spatial predictive modeling and developing, training, and validating machine learning and deep learning models.
• Skilled in preparing technical documentation and academic manuscripts, with a solid understanding of research workflows and the peer-review publication process.
• Knowledge of geospatial and terrestrial laser scanning data.

The WVURC was created as a not-for-profit corporation in 1985 to support research (R1) at West Virginia University. We provide evaluation, development, patenting, management, and marketing services for inventions of the faculty, staff and students of the University.

The WVURC receives and administers funds awarded by external agencies for research and other activities and is responsible for helping protect intellectual property through patents, copyrights and licensing agreements for start-up companies based on University research.

West Virginia University Research Corporation is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We invite all qualified applicants regardless of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, or Veteran status.