Research Asst. Professor (tenure track) -The University of Nevada, Reno

The Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology (NBMG), a research and public service unit of the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR) and the state geological survey, seeks a geoscientist for a tenure-track faculty position beginning on or after July 1, 2011.Managed as part of the Mackay School of Earth Sciences and Engineering within the College of Science at UNR, NBMG functions as an academic unit, and its principal scientists are tenure-track faculty members. Please see the position announcement below.


Position Announcement

RESEARCH ASSISTANT PROFESSOR (tenure track) Geosciences


The University of Nevada, Reno seeks applicants with interests in initiating and carrying out innovative research that can be applied to a wide variety of geologic topics of societal relevance in Nevada, including hazards, geological engineering, environmental geology, and water, mineral, and energy resources. Nevada is one of the most exciting regions in the world to do research in the geosciences. Opportunities abound for research on earthquake, flood, and ground-stability hazards; water flow in fractured rocks as related to potable groundwater,
geothermal systems, and mineral deposits; and detailed geologic mapping in support of fundamental understanding of Nevada’s geological history and 3D framework.



Minimum Qualifications

Applicants must have a doctorate in geology or a related geoscience field and a demonstrated record of research as indicated by dissertation or peer-reviewed publications. We seek candidates with skills in state-of-the-art techniques in any one of the following areas:. Quaternary geology, geomorphology, and neotectonics (incorporating geologic mapping in applications related to hazards, engineering geology, or environmental geology) . Hydrogeology, particularly involving modeling of fluid flow in fractured rocks utilizing information from detailed geologic mapping, geophysical observations, and drill-hole data . 3D modeling that integrates geophysical and geological observations and interpretations (from a background in either structural geology or geophysics, but with a clear understanding of both).


Excellent communication skills, as demonstrated in written application materials; potential for or an established record of publications; and ability to attract funding are essential.


Additional Preferred Qualifications


Preference will be given to candidates who

. show experience in field-based research,
. have at least one year of postdoctoral experience in academia, government, or industry,
. articulate how their research will complement and add to current NBMG research
programs, and
. have begun to demonstrate research productivity with publications in the peer-reviewed
literature.




Because the successful individual will be competing for funding from a variety of sources, including federal agencies interested in fundamental and applied geoscience research (e.g., National Science Foundation, U.S. Department of Energy, U.S. Geological Survey, Bureau of Land Management), state and local agencies, and industry, preference will be given to candidates
who explain achievable plans for funded research on Nevada-focused topics in their letters of interest. Preference will also be given to candidates who explain how their work will help fulfill NBMG’s commitment to public service.



Position Responsibilities


The successful candidate will be expected to work independently and to collaborate with other NBMG staff, faculty in the UNR Department of Geological Sciences and Engineering, the UNLV Department of Geoscience, the Desert Research Institute, and others in developing funded projects and conducting research leading to peer-reviewed publications. The successful candidate will be asked to communicate effectively with the public and community leaders regarding the geology of Nevada; this will include publications geared for the public and professional geologists, engineers, and planners. Although teaching and supervision of graduate students are not requirements of the position, the successful candidate will be encouraged to
work with the Department of Geological Sciences and Engineering to do so and help build the academic reputation of UNR.



Salary and Date of Appointment


The position will be a tenure-track faculty appointment with an academic-year base salary that is competitive with other research universities. Sufficient State of Nevada funds are available to cover the salary at the entry level for an assistant professor. If the candidate is hired at a higher salary, the State funds will be used to cover a portion of the salary, the rest of which may be covered with grants and contracts.


Starting date will be July 1, 2011 or shortly thereafter, depending on availability of the successful candidate.

Application

Please submit a letter expressing your interest in the position and research plans; names, e-mail and postal addresses, and telephone numbers of at least three references; a complete vita; and electronic copies of up to three of your publications to https://www.unrsearch.com/postings/8560. To ensure full consideration, applicants are encouraged to have all information on file by January 31, 2011. Note that NBMG has another tenure-track faculty position open in the areas of economic geology and geothermal systems, with an application deadline of December 23, 2010 (https://www.unrsearch.com/postings/8307). For further information about NBMG, please consult our website (http://www.nbmg.unr.edu). Additional information is available through http://jobs.unr.edu/.



The University of Nevada, Reno is committed to Equal Employment Opportunity/Affirmative Action in recruitment of its students and employees and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, age, creed, national origin, veteran status, physical or mental disability, and sexual orientation. The

University of Nevada employs only United States citizens and aliens lawfully authorized to work in the United States. Women and under-represented groups are encouraged to apply.


OTHER ATTRACTIONS OF UNR, NBMG, AND RENO


Nevada geology provides an exciting venue for basic and applied research. Excellent exposures of rocks and complex structures help our geologists unravel the tectonic history of western North America. Active tectonics, limited water resources, and booming population centers keep urban geology and studies of hazards at the forefront. Some of the world’s most productive gold and other mineral deposits are close at hand for studies of fundamental Earth processes and applications in exploration, mining, and environmental stewardship. Abundant geothermal systems are natural laboratories for understanding relationships between fluid flow and geological structure and for furthering development of renewable energy. Easy access to federally managed lands facilitates field work. Nevada's desert climate and temperature differentials by latitude and elevation make field work possible in different parts of the state throughout the year. Reno’s concentration of geoscientists from various industries, the U.S. Geological Survey, UNR, and the Desert Research Institute encourages interactions that stimulate research.


NBMG has excellent support staffs in administration, cartography, geographic information systems, editing, and geochemical and mineralogical analysis. Existing analyticalequipment available at UNR includes ICP-MS with laser ablation capabilities, AA, XRD, IC, GC, FTIR, C-H-N-S analyzer, atomic force microscopy, SEM, and stable-isotope capabilities. A portable spectrometer and portable XRF analyzer are available for mineralogical and geochemical mapping and sampling in the field. Some equipment is maintained by faculty members in the Mackay School of Earth Sciences andEngineering, and NBMG’s senior technician maintains much of the instrumentation and supervises student assistants on funded projects involving analytical geochemistry. Computer facilities include excellent computational packages for geochemical and hydrogeological modeling, remote sensing, image processing, interferometric synthetic aperture radar, GPS, GIS, and 3-D visualization and modeling. Geophysical equipment includes portable seismometers, a 48-channel reflection-refraction recording system, borehole logging systems, geodetic GPS instruments, gravimeters, total-field magnetometers, and a fully equipped paleomagnetic laboratory.



UNR has strong reputations in economic geology, geothermal resources, chemistry, geodesy, seismology, neotectonics, remote sensing, hydrogeology, and many other fields. NBMG works closely with industry, including the mining, geothermal, and geotechnical industries that are active in Nevada. NBMG is a supporter of UNR's Ralph J. Roberts Center for Research in Economic Geology and works closely with its director and graduate students on projects.

NBMG supports and benefits from UNR’s Great Basin Center for Geothermal Energy. The
University also hosts the Reno Field Office of the U.S. Geological Survey's mineral resources team. The Geological Society of Nevada (GSN), with approximately 1,000 members, has monthly meetings in Reno that regularly attract 100 to 200 geologists. NBMG supports GSN's efforts to hold a major symposium every five years, generally with a focus on ore deposits in the Great Basin and elsewhere.