Hydrology & Water Resources Research Fellow (PhD)

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory; Seattle, Richland (WA, WA); On-site; USD 69,000 - 119,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Flexible work schedules

Job summary

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) invites applications for a PhD-level hydrology scientist to advance water resources planning and energy–water research. You will work on projects applying machine learning and hydraulic/hydrologic modeling to real-world environmental challenges.

The role emphasizes collaboration within the Energy and Environment Directorate and Earth Systems Science Division, with opportunities to publish and present findings.

Qualifications

• PhD in Civil Engineering, Hydrology, Geography, Environmental Science, or related field, received within the past five years (60 months) or expected within the next 8 months from an accredited college or university.
• Hands‑on experience using a programming language (e.g., Python, R, Matlab, or C++) to analyze scientific or model datasets.
• Experience using software packages for hydraulic and/or hydrologic modeling.
• Demonstrated experience analyzing large observational and model datasets.
• Experience analyzing energy–water interactions, water availability, and scarcity, including effects of energy infrastructure and data centers on regional water resources.
• Experience assessing how droughts, floods, heat, and other extreme events affect water and energy infrastructure and regional systems.

Responsibilities

• Apply domain expertise in hydrology and water resources planning and management to solve complex water and energy related challenges.
• Apply advanced physical, statistical, and machine learning approaches using both commercial-off-the-shelf and custom developed tools.
• Develop technical documents for publication including presentations, reports, and peer‑reviewed publications.
• Participate as an active team member on multiple projects.

Skills

Python

R

Matlab

C++

Education

PhD in Civil Engineering or Hydrology

Tools

Hydraulic modeling software

Hydrologic modeling software

Job description

Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) invites applications for a PhD-level hydrology scientist to advance water resources planning and energy–water research. You will work on projects applying machine learning and hydraulic/hydrologic modeling to real-world environmental challenges.

The role emphasizes collaboration within the Energy and Environment Directorate and Earth Systems Science Division, with opportunities to publish and present findings.