Postdoctoral Fellow in Energy and Resource Systems The University of Texas at Austin in United States

Postdoctoral Fellow in Energy and Resource Systems at The University of Texas at Austin, based at the J.J. Pickle Research Campus in North Austin, Texas. The role is housed in the Bureau of Economic Geology and supports the Center for Energy Economics and its COMPASS consortium (Collaborative Optimization & Management of Power Allocation, Surface & Subsurface strategies).

This postdoctoral opening is centered on energy systems, resource economics, industrial engineering, operations research, data science, geospatial analysis, and environmental/resource modeling. The researcher will build and apply quantitative and economic models to study large-load industrial growth in Texas, including data centers, oil and gas operations, advanced manufacturing, refining, and mining, and the resulting pressure on shared energy, water, land, and community systems.

Core work includes database design and maintenance, data pipelines, geospatial and spatial suitability analysis, scenario planning, infrastructure and resource constraint mapping, and development of the COMPASS interactive visualization and mapping database. The fellow will also translate findings into consortium deliverables, peer-reviewed publications, stakeholder briefings, white papers, and policy-facing reports, while mentoring graduate and undergraduate researchers.

Eligibility highlights: applicants must hold a PhD in a quantitative field such as resource/environmental economics, economics, energy systems engineering, industrial engineering, operations research, data science, water/environmental resources engineering, or geosciences. The degree must have been earned within 3 years of the hire date. Strong research communication, peer-reviewed publication experience, teamwork, and the ability to explain quantitative results to non-technical audiences are required. Programming experience in Python, R, SQL, or Julia is expected, along with Excel and PowerPoint proficiency.

Preferred experience includes GIS, spatial suitability modeling, multi-criteria decision methods, machine-learning-based feature importance, regional economic or fiscal impact analysis, familiarity with electricity markets and ERCOT, and experience with regulatory/permitting/water-rights document extraction using machine learning or AI/LLM methods.

Funding: salary is listed at $65,000. The appointment is full time and expected to continue until 2027-08-10.

How to apply: submit the application through the Workday posting. Prepare a resume/CV, three work references with contact information, and a letter of interest. Current UT employees and contingent workers must apply through Workday and upload required materials in the application questions.