[Contract] Chemistry PhD Coding Experts

1000scholars; United States; Remote; USD 83,000 - 165,000; Part time

Job summary

Mercor is hiring PhD and Master's scientists to author AI evaluation tasks (Sci Code) for a new benchmark in scientific computing. You will author original, executable research problems that today's frontier models cannot solve.

Requirements include a PhD in chemistry (or closely related field), depth in quantum and computational chemistry, and proficiency in Python or R. Experience with Git/GitHub and Docker is preferred.

Qualifications

• PhD in chemistry, physical chemistry, theoretical chemistry, computational chemistry, or a closely related field.
• Depth in quantum chemistry and computational chemistry.
• Proficiency in Python or R for scientific computing; comfortable with GitHub and Docker in a pull-request workflow.

Responsibilities

• Source your own material: a published paper, a Kaggle dataset, an open-source repository, or a scenario you design.
• Write scientific prompts based on the input.
• Build the grading criteria that define a correct answer.
• Calibrate against frontier models to ensure failures are more frequent than successes.

Skills

Python

R

Scientific computing

Education

PhD in chemistry/related field

Tools

Git/GitHub

Docker

Job description

[Contract] Chemistry PhD Coding Experts

Mercor

Remote

Mercor is hiring PhD and Master's scientists to author AI evaluation tasks (Sci Code).

Mercor is partnering with leading AI labs on a new benchmark for scientific computing. You will author original, executable research problems that today's frontier models cannot solve.

Domains - depth required in at least two subdomains (with a coding focus)

Chemistry — quantum chemistry, computational chemistry.

What you'll do

• Source your own material: a published paper, a Kaggle dataset, an open-source repository, or a scenario you design
• Write scientific prompts based on the input
• Build the grading criteria that define a correct answer
• Calibrate against frontier models — a task ships only when strong models fail it more often than they succeed

Required

• PhD in chemistry, physical chemistry, theoretical chemistry, computational chemistry, or a closely related field
• Demonstrated depth in both of the following subdomains: quantum chemistry and computational chemistry
• Working proficiency in Python, R, or another relevant programming language for scientific computing
• Comfortable with Git/GitHub and running code in Docker — authoring runs through a pull-request workflow with automated quality checks

Preferred

• Publications in peer-reviewed journals
• Prior scientific software or research engineering experience

Engagement

• Duration: 6 weeks
• Commitment: part-time, 20+ hours per week
• Start date: immediate

Contract and Payment Terms

• You will be engaged as an independent contractor.
• This is a fully remote role that can be completed on your own schedule.
• Projects can be extended, shortened, or concluded early depending on needs and performance.
• Your work at Mercor will not involve access to confidential or proprietary information from any employer, client, or institution.
• Payments are weekly on Stripe or Wise based on services rendered.
• Please note: We are unable to support H1-B or STEM OPT candidates at this time.