The Carnegie Institution for Science is a U.S.-based non-profit, private endowment headquartered in Washington, DC. Andrew Carnegie founded the Carnegie Institution of Washington in 1902 as an organization for scientific discovery to serve as a home to exceptional individuals—men and women—with imagination and extraordinary dedication capable of working at the cutting edge of their fields. Today, Carnegie scientists work in six scientific departments on the West and East Coasts. Carnegie investigators are leaders in the fields of plant biology, developmental biology, earth and planetary sciences, astronomy, and global ecology.

The Carnegie Institution for Science is seeking a Director for the Geophysical Laboratory to lead the department in a multidisciplinary basic research program that includes earth and planetary science, astrobiology, and the origins of life and the chemistry and physics of materials. The Geophysical Laboratory is co-located with the Department of Terrestrial Magnetism, which maintains independent research programs in geochemistry, cosmochemistry, planetary, and stellar astronomy and geophysics, and planetary physics.

The director will be expected to uphold an active scientific program and to provide general scientific leadership for the staff, who currently focus on the research themes mentioned above. The successful candidate will have a strong record of scientific excellence in at least one of the following areas: Earth and planetary science, astrobiology, the origins of life, and the chemistry and physics of materials. The Geophysical Laboratory, located in Washington, DC consists of 13 staff scientists, 20-30 postdoctoral fellows, and a supporting technical staff. All scientific staff salaries, several postdoctoral fellows, and a major part of the research program are covered by endowment funds. Research grants make up the balance of the funding.

This person will report to the President of the Institution, currently Dr. Matthew Scott. The director will be responsible for the advancement of the program, as well as development, budget, and scientific/administrative oversight.

Application Instructions Potential candidates should send a CV and a letter of interest, attached as a single combined PDF file to search@carnegiescience.edu.

The review of applications will begin on January 15, 2017 and the position will remain open until it is filled. If you have questions or would like further information, please contact the chair of the search committee, Dr. Bruce Watson, at watsoe@rpi.edu.