USDA-ARS Postdoctoral Fellowship in Agricultural, Computer, and Mechanical Engineering
To submit your application, scroll to the bottom of this opportunity and click APPLY.
A complete application consists of:
- An application
- Transcript(s) – For this opportunity, an unofficial transcript or copy of the student academic records printed by the applicant or by academic advisors from internal institution systems may be submitted. Click here for detailed information about acceptable transcripts.
- A current resume/CV, including academic history, employment history, relevant experiences, and publication list
- Two educational or professional recommendations
All documents must be in English or include an official English translation.
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*Applications are reviewed on a rolling-basis.
ARS Office/Lab and Location: A research opportunity is currently available with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Research Service (ARS), located in Athens, Georgia.
The Agricultural Research Service (ARS) is the U.S. Department of Agriculture's chief scientific in-house research agency with a mission to find solutions to agricultural problems that affect Americans every day from field to table. ARS will deliver cutting-edge, scientific tools and innovative solutions for American farmers, producers, industry, and communities to support the nourishment and well-being of all people; sustain our nation’s agroecosystems and natural resources; and ensure the economic competitiveness and excellence of our agriculture. The vision of the agency is to provide global leadership in agricultural discoveries through scientific excellence.
Research Project: The postdoctoral fellow will contribute to research aimed at developing a scalable artificial intelligence (AI)-based imaging solution for applications in poultry meat. The project will focus on detecting and predicting key safety and quality attributes of poultry meat, such as foreign materials and pH, using hyperspectral imaging and AI techniques. In addition, the project will investigate the integration of physical AI approaches within imaging modalities to enable real-time, automated sensing and decision-making in poultry processing environments.
Learning Objectives: Under the guidance of a mentor, the participant will gain knowledge and experience in:
- Applying hyperspectral imaging techniques to evaluate the safety and quality of agricultural and food products, with a particular focus on poultry meat.
- Advancing and implementing artificial intelligence (AI) technologies for applications in food and agriculture.
- Developing general and scalable artificial intelligence solutions.
- Designing and building image-based sensing technologies and prototypes for real-time deployment of AI methods.
- Presenting research findings at scientific conferences and publishing results in peer-reviewed scientific and engineering journals.
Mentor(s): The mentor for this opportunity is Seung-Chul Yoon (seungchul.yoon@usda.gov). If you have questions about the nature of the research, please contact the mentor(s).
Anticipated Appointment Start Date: 2026. Start date is flexible and will depend on a variety of factors.
Appointment Length: The appointment will initially be for one year, but may be renewed upon recommendation of ARS and is contingent on the availability of funds.
Level of Participation: The appointment is full time.
Participant Stipend: The participant will receive a monthly stipend commensurate with educational level and experience. The anticipated stipend range is $70,000 - $80,000 annually.
Citizenship Requirements: This opportunity is available to U.S. citizens only.
ORISE Information: This program, administered by ORAU through its contract with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to manage the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE), was established through an interagency agreement between DOE and ARS. Participants do not become employees of USDA, ARS, DOE or the program administrator, and there are no employment-related benefits. Proof of health insurance is required for participation in this program. Health insurance can be obtained through ORISE.
Questions: Please visit our Program Website. After reading, if you have additional questions about the application process, please email ORISE.ARS.Southeast@orau.org and include the reference code for this opportunity.
The qualified candidate should have received or be currently pursuing a doctoral degree in one of the relevant fields.
Preferred skills:
- A broad understanding of agricultural, computer, and/or mechanical engineering, as well as computer vision, imaging, hyperspectral imaging, machine learning techniques in food and agricultural area, is desired.
- A understanding of modern AI model development
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