Post Doc at the Metropolitan Institute--Virginia Tech

The Metropolitan Institute (MI) at Virginia Tech in Alexandria, Virginia announces the position of a Post-Doctoral Fellow for the upcoming year. The job is a research appointment only, with no teaching duties. The appointment is for one year and can begin anytime during the fall semester, but our ideal start time would be January 15th 2013. The position reports to the Director of the Metropolitan Institute.

Metropolitan Institute: Our team (director, research manager, graduate research assistants, consultants, and interns) conducts basic and applied research on the dynamics of metropolitan complexities, such as resiliency, sustainability, health and security. We perform a wide variety of projects, such as case studies, program and policy evaluations/assessments, outreach and technical assistance to community and local governments, along with the standard fare of publications, reports, conferences, and workshops.

Given our location in the nation’s capital the Metropolitan Institute works closely with federal government agencies (including the White House Office of Urban Affairs), international and national nongovernment organizations (such as Smart Growth America, Center for Community Progress), private consulting groups, and local government and communities groups within the greater Washington, DC region. We also collaborate with the faculty researchers across the College of Architecture and Urban Studies and in particular within the School of Public and International Affairs. 

Scope of Work: We are looking for an entrepreneurial candidate to help elevate several of the Institute’s major research initiatives and projects, such as:

·       Urban Regeneration, Shrinking Cities, and Vacant Property Reclamation

·       Urban and Community Resilience

·       Sustainability and the Sustainability Planning Lab

·       Smart Cities, Megacities, and the New Metropolis

·       Trans-Atlantic Policy & Planning Translation Project

Within the context of the Institute’s major research initiatives, we view this post-doctoral fellowship as a wonderful opportunity for a new scholar to develop and test his or her own research ideas and talents by building their own portfolio of research projects and papers.  We anticipate the Fellows would spent about 1/3 of his/her time on grant proposals/concept papers, 1/3 in support of MI’s signature research areas and the fellow’s related research questions, and 1/3 writing publications and participating in workshops and conferences.

Required Qualifications: Ph.D. in any of the following fields: urban planning, public policy, sociology, geography or any social science field related to urban studies.

Preferred Qualifications and Areas of Interest: We are especially interested in fellows with interest and research experience developing, implementing, and measuring sustainability plans, programs, and initiatives within the US and abroad.  Another area of interest involves the diffusion of innovation and transfer of policies among local government and communities within the US and across the Atlantic—how do cities learn from each other? Earlier this year, as part of a grant from the Ford Foundation, the Institute launched the Vacant Properties Research Network, so we are also keen on fellows who have done work on the regeneration of legacy/shrinking cities.

If interested, please send your CV and writing sample to:

Jessica Hanff

Research and Operations Manager

703.706.8100

jesshanff@vt.edu