Research / Full-time
Principal Scientist, Persistent Signals
Lead the review standard for unresolved catalog entries and supervise cross-program candidate adjudication.
This role exists because the catalog is no longer a side record. It is a standing institutional product with public summaries, restricted appendices, contradictory evidence, and old entries that still attract new claims.
CV with publication, preprint, report, or observatory-service history
Two representative papers, reports, or public data products
Short statement on how you handle attractive but unsupported detections
Candidate exercise
A bounded candidate-review discussion using redacted public evidence and ordinary-source alternatives.
Research recruiting desk / FAL-RS-26-014
Full-time exempt research appointment
Continuing employee benefit tier
REC-RS-26-014-RES
FAL-RS-26-014-public-notice-01
July 2, 2026
Search committee
- 01Dr. Frances Okafor
- 02Research recruiting desk
- 03Scientific Review Committee delegate
Recruiting active file plus finalist review record
How this packet is evaluated
Research
Finalist review covers publication history, station-record access, and restricted-appendix handling before any archive exposure.
Complete packets are logged under REC-RS-26-014-RES, separated from public correspondence, and assigned to the Research recruiting desk for first read.
Any exercise is bounded, redacted, and evaluated only for hiring. It is not added to the catalog, public systems, grant files, or laboratory work product.
| Criterion | Weight | Evidence reviewed |
|---|---|---|
| Evidence discipline | 35% | Can hold unresolved detections without turning uncertainty into a claim. |
| Source rejection | 25% | Documents ordinary-source alternatives before advancing a candidate. |
| Public record judgment | 20% | Writes catalog language that remains precise under outside attention. |
| Program leadership | 20% | Improves review meetings, mentorship, and cross-program handoffs. |
- 01Reference check after candidate notice
- 02Station access and site-duty acknowledgement
- 03Records-handling and confidentiality review
- 04Program-office recommendation before offer
Candidate review docket REC-RS-26-014-RES; public posting version FAL-RS-26-014-public-notice-01.
Responsibilities
- Chair weekly candidate review for Class II and Class III entries
- Set evidentiary standards for recurrence, coincidence, and ordinary-source rejection
- Supervise technical reports prepared for public and restricted archives
- Mentor research staff working across terrestrial, oceanic, and celestial records
Qualifications
- Ph.D. in astrophysics, geophysics, acoustics, statistics, or adjacent signal science
- Ten or more years of postdoctoral or institute-level research experience
- Publication record in weak-signal detection, anomaly review, or long-baseline instrumentation
- Demonstrated ability to say no to attractive but unsupported conclusions
Preferred experience
- Experience stewarding public scientific data products
- Prior service on observatory, archive, or instrument review boards
What good work looks like
- Candidate review meetings become slower, clearer, and better documented
- Attractive entries are held until ordinary-source rejection is complete
- Public catalog language remains precise under media and supporter attention
Continuing research appointment
Three regular weeks per quarter at Calder Ridge
Up to 15 percent for collaborator review and archive visits
Station access review and publication-history check required
Hiring process
- 1Portfolio and publication review
- 2Remote technical interview with program heads
- 3On-site candidate review exercise at Calder Ridge
- 4Directorate interview and reference review
Recruiting acknowledges complete packets within five business days and routes them to the program office named on the requisition.
Access, relocation, and accommodations
Three regular weeks per quarter at Calder Ridge
Relocation support is reviewed after finalist stage for continuing Calder Ridge appointments.
Candidates may request accommodation support through recruiting before any timed exercise or station visit.
Research recruiting desk, FAL-RS-26-014
- Recruiting will not request references until the candidate is notified.
- Finalist access checks are started only after a program panel recommends continued review.
- Candidate materials are retained under the recruiting records schedule and are not used as public work product.
Candidate materials remain in the recruiting record and are not used as laboratory work product, public samples, or source material for the catalog.
Candidates may request accommodations before any timed exercise, station visit, or access-review step by contacting the recruiting desk listed on the requisition.
FAL evaluates candidates without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status, age, or any other protected status.
Apply for this position
Applications are read by the relevant program. Include links to your CV, publications, or portfolio where relevant. For station roles, use the message field to note any field, access-controlled, archive, or remote-site experience that would help the review panel.