Job Details

Research Associate

Position Number: 6694489
Location: Salt Lake City, UT
Position Type: Laboratory and Research

Research Associate

Job Summary

We are looking for MS and PhD students with experience and interest in state-of-the-art data management technologies, high performance computing, memory management, and software development. You will enjoy being part of a world-renowned research institute and work closely with other students, PostDocs, software engineers, and faculty members on developing cutting-edge AI ready data management.

We're working on extending and maintaining the National Data Platform (https://nationaldataplatform.org/) and advanced data management software in the Science Data Exchange (https://scidx.sci.utah.edu/) with new use cases, features, and technology.

We're seeking Research Associates who can contribute to the research and development of advance data management and AI ready platforms with topics such as: data discovery, data & memory management, heterogeneous data integration, multi-modal machine learning, high performance computing (HPC), cyberinfrastructure, edge computing, cloud computing, data streaming, remote execution, agentic programing, and NLP interfaces. Areas of application for these methods include: geosciences (environmental, climate, atmospheric, earthquake, hydrology, etc), medical imaging, sociology (food security, policy impacts, etc), and more.

Please contact Jess Tate (jess@sci.utah.edu) for further information.

The SCI Institute

The SCI Institute is a world-class research institute located within the new Warnock Engineering Building on the University of Utah campus. We are a highly dynamic, driven group of over 170 faculty, staff, and students. The overarching goals of the SCI Institute's scientific computing research are to create new techniques, tools, and systems, by which scientists may solve problems affecting various aspects of human life. We believe that to advance the state-of-the-art and create meaningful computational solutions for such complex systems, one needs to advance research in a number of areas within scientific computing, including: visualization, simulation, and modeling. The SCI Institute presents a highly challenging, collaborative work environment that can be deeply rewarding for the right individual. Further information is available at http://www.sci.utah.edu/.

Work Environment

You will be contributing to cutting-edge computational methods for data management, HPC, edge computing and more.
You will work with a diverse team of students, professional software engineers, research staff, and faculty
We offer professional career development opportunities.

Responsibilities
Responsibilities:

Work with faculty, students, and staff in designing and developing research products: scientific/engineering papers, conference presentations, seminar presentations, etc.
Aid in the specification of software requirements in coordination with faculty or team leads.
Contribute to software products with code contributions, testing, review, and documentation
Profile and optimize performance for software products and research pipelines
Interface with collaboration partners and participate actively in a collaborative work environment to turn requirements into optimal solutions on a large scale.
Contribute actively to team discussions on architectural design and solutions by continuously looking for improvements.
Research and stay current with project-related scientific literature.
Identify and implement creative solutions to overcome problems.
Mentor other team members on research, technology, and project expertise.
Support the end-user community by responding to user questions posted on the discussion list, fixing bugs, and incorporating feature requests.
Help with the project website and discussion boards for user support, developer support, and announcements.
Contribute to teaching activities by preparing and presenting educational seminars

Minimum Qualifications
Required Skills:

Current or planned MS or PhD student at the University in CS or related field.
Solid background and working knowledge of computer science fundamentals including algorithms, data structures, object-oriented programming, server technology, and databases.
Strong understanding of Linux toolchains, and debugging tools
Proficiency in Python or similar language
Experience in git, or similar version control system, and their platforms (GitHub, GitLab, etc)
Ability to navigate issues related to low-level system dependencies, architecture flags (e.g., AVX), etc.
Debugging and critical thinking skills including identifying bottlenecks, and bugs and devising solutions to these problems.

Preferred, but not required, skills and experience:

Experience contributing to scientific computing frameworks
Knowledge of RDMA, libfabric, or similar low-level communication APIs
Familiarity with FastAPI, Kafka, or Python pipelines for integration
Working with large codebases
Experience with GitHub Actions, GitLab CI, or similar CI/CD systems
Containerization (Docker) and building software for multi-arch environments
Development in high-performance computing (HPC) or distributed systems
Strong understanding of Linux toolchains, build systems (CMake), and debugging tools
Parallel computing libraries (MPI, RPC, Mercury, Margo)
Experience with HTML and web technologies.
Cloud computing platforms and web deployment technologies

Non-Technical Skills

Able to work in a collaborative software development environment as well as working independently with minimal supervision and direction.
Able to learn new tools and technologies.
Being self-motivated and having good organizational, communication, and teamwork skills is essential.
Willingness and ability to collaborate in a highly diverse, multi-disciplinary environment.
Excellent oral and written communication skills necessary to effectively work in a multidisciplinary team environment.
Communication and presentation skills to engage technical and non-technical audiences.
Strong interpersonal abilities and teamwork skills.
Highly motivated to support research projects.
Ability to manage time across simultaneous tasks.

Note: This job description is not designed to contain or be interpreted as a comprehensive inventory of all duties, responsibilities and qualifications required of employees assigned to the job.
Minimum Qualifications

Requires a bachelor's degree in a related area or equivalent experience. Applicants must be a current or future MS or PhD student at the University in CS or related field. Applicants must demonstrate the potential ability to perform the essential functions of the job as outlined in the position description.

Preferences

Special Instructions

Requisition Number: PRN16504N
Full Time or Part Time? Part Time
Work Schedule Summary:
Department: 00810 - Scient Comp & Imag Instit-Oper
Location: Campus
Pay Rate Range: 20,000 to 42,000
Close Date: 1/31/2026
Open Until Filled:

To apply, visit https://utah.peopleadmin.com/postings/191386