Job Title: Graduate Research Assistant - Regional Modeling
PVN ID: RC-2002-003522
Category: Research
Location: CUNY-ADVANCED SCIENCE RESEARCH CENTER

Job Description

General Description

Regional Modeling of Nutrient Pollution Arising from Food, Energy And Water Systems under Climate Extremes

 The Advanced Science Research Center at the Graduate Center of the City University of New York has an opening for a graduate student to work on an NSF-funded collaborative research project. The goal of this project is to explore contemporary and future challenges to food-energy-water systems (FEWS) of the Northeastern and Midwestern United States, in light of climate change and its extremes.  One aspect of this work will focus on the associated water quality issues.  The selected candidate will work under the supervision of Dr. Richard Smith and colleagues at the United States Geological Survey (USGS) in Reston, VA to develop and analyze nutrient pollution arising from FEWS using the SPAtially Referenced Regression On Watershed model (SPARROW).

 

Primary responsibilities:

  • Developing and analyzing nutrient pollution arising from FEWS;
  • Handling seasonal nutrient flux over decadal periods, based on a dynamic formulation with transient storage components including historical nutrient source input legacies;
  • Extending Sparrow to the daily time step using re-parameterization techniques;
  • Estimating probability distributions of daily stream fluxes;
  • Testing SPARROW against existing calibration and validation data, specifically: observed discharge, temperature and quality at USGS gauges, USGS- National Water-Quality Assessment (NAWQA), and multi-agency data syntheses

 

Qualifications and skills sought:

  • Prior experience with water quality modeling and/or SPARROW;
  • Experience with statistical modeling, particularly with SAS;
  • Programing experience (MATLAB, Python, R or C++);
  • Excellent oral and written communication skills;
  • Demonstrable ability to learn new ideas;
  • Good numerical skills;
  • Presentation skills for internal team meetings and scientific conferences.

Other Duties

Qualifications

Candidate should have completed a bachelor’s degree by the time of appointment in an appropriate field of study, from an accredited institution. Masters and PhD degree candidates are sought.

About the Research Foundation

The Research Foundation of The City University of New York (RFCUNY) was established as a not-for-profit educational corporation chartered by the State of New York in 1963. RFCUNY supports CUNY faculty and staff in identifying and obtaining external support (pre-award) from government and private sponsors and is responsible for the administration of all such funded programs (post-award).

RFCUNY stands between CUNY’s principal investigators (PIs) and the sponsors who support them and strives to fulfill its essential responsibilities to both groups. Working closely with individual PIs and Grants Officers on the campuses, RFCUNY oversees employment, accounting, audit, reporting, purchasing, and special responsibilities that include management of a planned giving program; liaison with governmental agencies and foundations; negotiation of agreements; facility construction and renovation; protection and commercialization of intellectual property; and compliance with applicable standards in research involving human subjects, animal care, environmental and radiological safety, and conflicts of interest.

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

The Research Foundation of the City University of New York is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action/Americans with Disabilities Act/E-Verify Employer. It is the policy of the Research Foundation of CUNY to provide equal employment opportunities free of discrimination based on race, color, age, religion, sex, pregnancy, childbirth, national origin, disability, marital status, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, marital status, domestic violence victim status, arrest record, criminal conviction history, or any other protected characteristic under applicable law.

Key Features

Department
Environmental Sciences Initiative
Status
Part Time
Pay Range
$15.00
Hour(s) a week
15.00
Closing Date
Apr 11, 2020 (Or Until Filled)
Bargaining Unit
No

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