Research Associate - AQ Modeler
University of North Carolina- Chapel Hill
NC-Chapel-Hill, NC · HybridResearch$65–83K/yrSeen 2 days agoSeen in employer's feed 2 days ago
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Job overview
The Research Associate – Air Quality Modeler develops regional-scale air quality model applications for various source types, focusing on atmospheric chemistry and source-specific impact assessment. The role applies source apportionment and source sensitivity approaches using cloud computing, collaborates with government, academic, and industry stakeholders, supports a global user community, and contributes to research dissemination, grant proposals, publications, and presentations.
Skills & qualifications
Skills
Qualifications
Full job description
Employment Type: Permanent Staff (EHRA NF)
Vacancy ID: NF0010181
Salary Range: $65,000 - $82,600 annually
Position Summary/Description:
This position may be eligible for a hybrid work arrangement that may include a partially remote work location, consistent with System Office policy. UNC Chapel Hill employees are generally required to reside within a reasonable commuting distance of their assigned duty station.
This position serves as a Research Associate – Air Quality Modeler reporting to the Director of the Center for Environmental Modeling for Policy Development, within the Institute for the Environment. The Research Associate – Air Quality Modeler will develop regional-scale air quality model applications for various source types with a focus on atmospheric chemistry and source-specific impact assessment by applying source apportionment and source sensitivity approaches on cloud computing solutions. This position with work with multiple stakeholders in the Government, academia and industry to develop / incorporate new modeling approaches for air pollution studies used for impact assessment and also support a global user community on best practices for air quality modeling. Lastly, the Research Associate – Air Quality Modeler will perform research dissemination and serve as contributor to grant proposals and publication / presentation of findings.
Education and Experience:
Advanced degree in a discipline related to the field of physical or atmospheric sciences and 3 to 5 years of related training or experience with a focus on numerical modeling of air pollution at multiple scales and model evaluation and source attribution.
Essential Skills:
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Experience and proficiency with CMAQ source code
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Experience with preparing inputs for CMAQ or similar models
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Experience and proficiency developing source apportionment or source sensitivity studies using forward and inverse modeling
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Proficiency in Fortran90
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Proficiency in R/Python and EPA guidance on model evaluation procedures
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Experience in working with big data and parallel computing in the cloud environment with major vendors
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Experience in developing and offering training to user community
AA/EEO Statement:
The University is an equal opportunity employer and welcomes all to apply without regard to age, color, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information, national origin, race, religion, sex, or sexual orientation. We encourage all qualified applicants to apply, including protected veterans and individuals with disabilities.
How this job compares
Set against the 1,140 open Research Associate jobs on Olive Jobs, counted November 10, 2026.
- Pay
- This posting$65–83K/yr
- US median$70–97K/yr406 salary ranges
This range's midpoint, $74K, is 14% below the US median midpoint ($86K) — in the middle half of Research Associate salary ranges across the US.
- Openings
- Olive Jobs lists 40 open Research Associate jobs in North Carolina and 1,140 across the US. 1% of them nationwide are listed as remote or flexible.
- Hiring the most in North Carolina
- University of North Carolina- Chapel Hill (this employer)27 open
- North Carolina Agriculture & Technical State Unive7 open
- Pacific Northwest National Laboratory2 open
- Experience
- Research Associate postings that state a minimum ask for 2 years of experience at the median; the middle half ask for 1 to 3 years (298 postings).
- Education
- 615 of the 1,140 open Research Associate jobs (54%) ask for a bachelor's degree or higher.
Counted across the open, public US postings on Olive Jobs on November 10, 2026. Pay medians are the middle values of the low ends and of the high ends of postings that list both ends of a range in the same cadence (a yearly salary or an hourly rate); a range's midpoint is halfway between its ends. Pay and experience figures resting on fewer than 20 postings are left out.
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