Postdoctoral Program

Overview

The NOAA Cooperative Science Center in Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology (NCAS-M) Postdoctoral Program (PDP) offers two-year fellowships that prepare emerging scholars to advance NOAA’s mission in weather, climate, and air quality. Fellows receive advanced training, conduct mission-driven research, and collaborate closely with NOAA scientists.

NCAS-M organizes its priorities into three thematic areas and five focus areas that guide each fellow’s work.
Table 1: NCAS-M Thematic and Focus Areas in Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology

Thematic Areas Focus Areas
  1. Building Resilient Communities to Weather Extremes
  2. Innovative Observations for Better Climate, Weather, and Air Quality Prediction
  3. Interdisciplinary Research for Healthy Communities
  1. Process-level understanding and improved modeling
  2. Quantification and communication of forecast uncertainty
  3. High-resolution model development
  4. Integrated social science
  5. Effective communication of climate and weather risk

Requirements

NCAS-M supports two postdoctoral fellows annually for two-year appointments. Eligible applicants are recent Ph.D. graduates (within the past two years), must be U.S. citizens, and may receive up to 24 months of support within a 26-month window.

  1. Postdoctoral research must address NOAA mission priority areas and align with NCAS-M’s thematic and focus areas.
  2. Fellows will collaborate with NCAS-M faculty, other Cooperative Science Center postdoctoral fellows and scientists, and NOAA scientists through research, training, tool development, and professional meetings.
  3. Fellows will co-locate at a NOAA facility for a minimum of six (6) consecutive months and up to one (1) year to: a) deepen NCAS-M–NOAA collaboration in atmospheric sciences and meteorology; b) contribute to the host facility’s priority projects; c) build NOAA mission capacity within NCAS-M; and d) support student training and professional development.
  4. Fellows will complete an Individual Postdoctoral Development Plan (IPDDP) three times per year (planning form, mid-year report, end-of-year report) to track progress.

In addition, fellows receive support for travel and professional development (including relevant technical training) and are encouraged to participate in strategic planning, project management, and student mentoring.