Postdoctoral Research Associate in Princeton, New Jersey at Princeton University

The Energy Systems Analysis Group and the Behavioral Science for Policy Lab (BSPL) are seeking an outstanding postdoctoral research associate or more senior researcher position expected to start in the Fall of 2026. The appointment will be based in the Andlinger Center which is focused on resolving critical challenges to assuring a secure, resilient, and sustainable energy and environmental future.

The post-doctoral researcher will report to Chris Greig and Elke Weber, and will collaborate with other researchers such as Richard Moss, post-docs, and graduate students across disciplines. The successful candidate will contribute to the design and implementation of an applied research project to understand the barriers to private sector investment climate adaptation and resilience and build new analytical tools to make the case for such investments. In particular, the position will seek to understand how private sector actors consider investments in energy and water infrastructure to make them more resilient to extreme but uncertain weather events, the frequency and severity of which are anticipated to increase with climate change. The researcher will also seek to develop analytical tools to model the returns on capital invested to strengthen infrastructure resilience under such climate uncertainty.

This requires knowledge of investment decision processes and financial analysis under uncertainty. Research will include AI assisted text analysis of corporate sustainability reports, annual reports, interviews with company executives, discounted cash flow analysis with probabilistic cost and revenue projections, and agent-based modeling. We are particularly interested in candidates with experience in both social science methods and computational modeling.

Other duties include contribution to other ongoing center projects, preparation of and participation in workshops, and drafting reports and papers for publication.

The Andlinger Center is especially interested in candidates who will contribute to the excellence of the academic community and diversity of the curriculum, broadly defined. The term of appointment is based on rank. Positions at the postdoctoral rank are for one year with the possibility of renewal pending satisfactory performance and continued funding; those hired at more senior ranks may have multi-year appointments. The work location for this position is in-person on campus at Princeton University. This position is subject to the University’s background check policy.

This position is not eligible for sponsorship of an H-1B visa requiring consular processing; other visa sponsorships (including H-1B visas not requiring consular processing) may be available, as appropriate.

Required qualifications.

• Ph.D. in operational research and financial engineering, economics, finance, or another relevant discipline.
• Computational or agent-based modeling experience
• Data analysis and modeling skills
• Proficiency in web-based computer programming (online experimentation and surveys).

Desired qualifications:

• Publications
• Experience working as a member of interdisciplinary teams.
• Previous research or professional experience in energy and sustainability sectors.

Application Materials:

• Cover letter
• CV
• 2 publications or writing samples
• 2 recommendation letters (to be submitted directly by references)