The USDA, Agricultural Research Service, Beltsville Agricultural Research Center in Beltsville, MD is looking for a permanent full-time Research Agricultural Engineer/Research Agronomist/Research Biologist/Research Soil Scientist. The incumbent will be responsible for conducting research in support of a USDA Management Unit working with field crops grown across the U.S.  The primary duties of this position include developing research plans and conducting experiments within the overall objectives of the Management Unit, working as part of a multi-disciplinary team to conceptualize and develop mechanistic crop modeling approaches to quantify and simulate agricultural systems issues, disseminating research findings in peer-reviewed journals, and provide consultation to internal and external to stakeholders.

The ideal candidate will be a technologically literate individual who can apply systems theory to the solution of complex, agricultural problems and to develop computer-aided farm decision support systems and assessment tools for agricultural systems studies. This individual would have a diverse background to use these skills to work with a multidisciplinary team in the areas of understanding the mechanisms and diversity of plant and soil responses to various abiotic factors including climate change. The incumbent will develop, test, and modify models of crop responses to soil-plant-atmospheric variables.  For more details about the position, contact Drs. David Fleisher (david.fleisher@usda.gov) or V.R. Reddy (vr.reddy@usda.gov).