Postdoctoral Researcher – Human-Agent Collaboration in Scientific Discovery

Posting Title

Postdoctoral Researcher – Human‑Agent Collaboration in Scientific Discovery

The Computational Sciences Center (CSC) at the National Laboratory of the Rockies (NLR) seeks a postdoctoral researcher focused on Human‑Agent Collaboration for Scientific Discovery. The role involves multidisciplinary work spanning Human‑AI teaming, natural language processing, and AI for science to develop frameworks that integrate agentic AI systems into the daily work of human scientists.

• Independently lead an AI research project, under the supervision of a research mentor and in collaboration with other project members, with the goal of submitting a manuscript to a top‑tier venue at the end of the first year.
• Lead the design and conduct of interactive evaluations with human scientists through real‑world studies to assess the efficacy of the proposed research.
• Develop, test, and push high‑quality code from project work to the shared platform.
• Communicate research progress verbally and in writing through regular project updates.

• Recent PhD graduate within the last three years.
• Must meet educational requirements prior to employment start date.

• Experience using software frameworks and standards for designing and evaluating agentic AI systems (e.g., Docker, Model Context Protocol, Agent Skills, Open Hands).
• Familiarity with the fundamentals of large language models: architectures, training pipelines including post‑training, data curation, and downstream deployment as agents.
• Experience applying machine learning to scientific discovery problems (e.g., materials discovery, biology, chemistry, physics, theorem proving).
• Strong communication skills and a proactive, question‑driven approach to collaboration.

• Research experience in human‑computer interaction and/or human‑AI teaming.
• Track record of first‑author publications in top‑tier venues.
• Demonstrated interest in using AI as a tool to solve scientific challenges.

$76,600 – $126,400 for full‑time 40‑hour work week.

• Medical, dental, and vision insurance; short‑term disability insurance.
• Pension benefits; 403(b) Employee Savings Plan with employer match.
• Life and accidental death and dismemberment (AD&D) insurance.
• Personal time off (PTO) and sick leave; paid holidays.
• Potential eligibility for performance, merit, and achievement‑based awards with a monetary component.
• Possible relocation expense reimbursement.

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age (40 and over), color, disability, gender identity, genetic information, marital status, domestic partner status, military or veteran status, national origin/ancestry, race, religion, creed, sex (including pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding), sexual orientation, and any other applicable status protected by federal, state, or local laws.