Interested in this Research Scientist role at University of Illinois?
Apply Now →About This Role
Visiting Associate Research Scientist, Analytical Chemistry \- Illinois State Water Survey, PRI
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
### Illinois State Water Survey
#### Job Summary
Service as Section Head of the Health and Environmental Applications Laboratory (HEAL). Provide expert support in developing and maintaining laboratory Quality Systems to achieve and maintain accreditation according to ISO/IEC 17025 and related accreditation standards. Oversees all quality control activities including training and support of laboratory operations.
#### Duties \& Responsibilities
- Research \- Chemical Laboratory 55% Serve as Principal Investigator for externally funded research grants and contracts, including new proposal development and delivery of sponsor\-required outputs. Seek out fee\-for\-service analytical opportunities across PRI, UIUC, and globally. Provide strategic leadership and make high level decisions impacting laboratory operations, including service and analysis offerings, client outreach and development, and overall business functions. Oversee personnel management, including supervision of laboratory staff, hiring, onboarding, performance evaluation, conflict resolution, and prioritization of staff responsibilities. In coordination with the Laboratory Manager and ISWS leadership, ensure staff are trained and adhering to Standard Operating Procedures and safety practices. Monitor budgets and make financial decisions; coordinate with ISWS leadership, PRI Accounting, and PRI Grants and Contracts to ensure laboratory future capabilities and financial success. Develop and maintain service rates with PRI and UI Purchasing staff in accordance with System Government Costing requirements; communicate changes to sponsors and clients in a timely manner. Oversee on\-time client deliverable delivery and timely invoicing processes, including invoice generation, tracking, coordination with accounting, and follow\-up on outstanding invoices; maintain familiarity with Laboratory Information Management System (LIMS). Serve as the primary point of contact for client inquiries, analytical requests, audits, emergencies, facility issues, and other operational needs. Conduct internal reviews of process and safety audits to improve laboratory efficiency, quality, and compliance. Oversee purchasing and procurement activities, maintain purchasing card certification, and ensure timely and accurate expense reporting in coordination with PRI Purchasing.
- Research \- Laboratory Technical Oversight 25% Stay current with developments in analytical methodologies, instrumentation, and client/research needs to ensure laboratory services align with best practices and proactively address emerging analytical research needs. Maintain familiarity with new and existing laboratory methods and analytical approaches. Assist with instrument maintenance and lifecycle planning. Collaborate with instrument troubleshooting in coordination with the Laboratory Manager. Lead innovative and original research efforts in water analytics. Submit proposals to external funding agencies to support original research objectives. Collaborate with other ISWS, PRI, UIUC, and external scientists to draft successful proposals and perform water\-related research.
- Research Quality Assurance 10% Work closely with the Quality Assurance staff to review, approve, and report data in a timely manner. Collaborate to resolve analytical issues, data quality concerns, and other factors affecting data integrity and reporting.
- Professional Engagement 10% Lead laboratory staff meetings and participate in PRI and ISWS meetings to remain aligned with organizational priorities. Conduct outreach to expand the laboratory client base and strengthen engagement with UIUC, PRI, and external partners. Stay current with developments in the discipline through training, conferences, and professional activities; travel may be required. Perform additional duties as needed to support the mission and goals of PRI and the University of Illinois.
#### Physical Demands and Working Conditions
- Work is primarily conducted in laboratory and office setting with responsibility for overseeing facilities, staff, and laboratory operations.
#### Work Schedule, Travel, or Other Job Expectations
- Duties may include responding to audits, inspections, emergencies, or facility issues.
- Travel may be required for meetings, conferences, and outreach activities, including occasional overnight stays.
#### Minimum Qualifications
PhD with 5 yrs. professional experience, or MS/MA with 8 yrs. professional experience, or BS/BA with 10 yrs. professional experience in chemistry laboratory. Degree in chemistry, or related. • A driver’s license is required.
#### Preferred Qualifications
- Experience directing or managing a fee for service laboratory or cost recovery operation.
- Familiarity with academic, governmental, or contract research work settings.
- Experience developing client relationships, expanding services, and supporting program growth.
#### Knowledge, Skills and Abilities
- Demonstrated ability to serve as Principal Investigator on externally funded projects, including proposal development, sponsor communication, and delivery of project outcomes.
- Strong leadership and management skills, with the ability to make independent, high level decisions affecting laboratory operations, strategy, and direction.
- Proven experience managing personnel, including hiring, supervision, performance management, conflict resolution, and workforce planning.
- Demonstrated ability to oversee laboratory operations and ensure compliance with SOPs, safety standards, and regulatory requirements.
- Strong financial management skills, including budgeting, monitoring expenditures, and coordinating with accounting and grants/contracts personnel.
- Experience developing and managing service rates in accordance with institutional or governmental costing requirements.
- Knowledge of invoicing processes, financial tracking, and account management; familiarity with Laboratory Information Management Systems (LIMS).
- Strong communication and interpersonal skills for directing a team and with the ability to serve as the primary point of contact for sponsors, auditors, institutional stakeholders, and external partners.
- Demonstrated ability to conduct internal reviews and audits and implement process improvements to enhance efficiency, quality, and compliance.
- Experience with procurement, purchasing, and expense reporting within institutional guidelines.
- Strong organizational skills and the ability to manage multiple priorities, deadlines, and operational demands in a complex environment.
#### Appointment Information
This is a 100% full\-time Visiting Academic Professional position, appointed on a 12\-month basis. The expected start date is as soon as possible after 8/17/2026\. Position may become regular non\-visiting at future date. The budgeted salary range for this position is $80,000 to $90,000\. The salary is competitive and commensurate with qualifications and experience, while also considering internal equity. It is not typical for an individual to be offered a salary at or near the top of the full range for a position.
This position is eligible for sponsorship for work authorization, except for sponsorship of a new H 1 B petition that would incur the $100,000 fee.
Please note that interviews may take place before the close of the job ad. No offers will be extended until after the close of the job advertisement.
#### Application Procedures \& Deadline Information
Applications must be received by 6:00 pm (Central Time) on August 18th 2026\. Apply for this position using the Apply Now button at the top or bottom of this posting. Applications not submitted through https://jobs.illinois.edu will not be considered. For further information about this specific position, please contact Jon Freiman HR Business Partner at jcf@ilinois.edu For questions regarding the application process, please contact 217\-333\-2137\.
At the University of Illinois Urbana\-Champaign — the state’s flagship public university and one of the world’s leading research institutions — every staff member helps shape what’s next. Founded in 1867, Illinois is home to a vibrant community of 59,000 students from all 50 states and 129 countries, supported by 15 colleges and instructional units, more than 20 research institutes, and one of the most comprehensive student service ecosystems in the nation. Whether you’re empowering first\-generation students, fueling breakthrough innovation, or strengthening communities across Illinois and beyond, your work here has a far\-reaching and deeply meaningful impact. The university offers a highly competitive benefits package designed to support your well\-being, growth, and financial security. Join a top 10 public university that has launched over 330 startups and continues to redefine excellence — where the Illinois Value Proposition ensures that your contributions are recognized, your potential is nurtured, and your career can thrive.
Champaign\-Urbana
*Artificial Intelligence (AI) tools may be used in some portions of the candidate review process for this position; however, all employment decisions will be made by a person.*
This position is intended to be eligible for benefits. This includes Health, Dental, Vision, Life Insurance, a Retirement Plan, Paid time Off, and Tuition waivers for employees and dependents.
The University of Illinois System is an equal opportunity employer, including but not limited to disability and/or veteran status, and complies with all applicable state and federal employment mandates. Please visit Required Employment Notices and Posters to view our non\-discrimination statement and find additional information about required background checks, sexual harassment/misconduct disclosures, and employment eligibility review through E\-Verify.
Applicants with disabilities are encouraged to apply and may request a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act (2008\) to complete the application and/or interview process. Accommodations may also be requested on the basis of pregnancy, childbirth, and related conditions, or religion. Requests may be submitted through the reasonable accommodation portal, or by contacting the Office for Access \& Equity at 217\-333\-0885, option \#1, or accessibility@illinois.edu.
Requisition ID: 1037327
Job Category: Research
Apply at: https://jobs.illinois.edu
Salary Context
This $80K-$90K range is in the lower quartile for Research Scientist roles in our dataset (median: $183K across 83 roles with salary data).
Role Details
About This Role
Research Scientists push the boundaries of what AI can do. They design experiments, develop novel architectures, publish papers, and translate research breakthroughs into production capabilities. This is where the fundamental advances happen, from attention mechanisms to diffusion models to reasoning chains.
The work is intellectually demanding and often ambiguous. You might spend months on an approach that doesn't pan out. The best research scientists combine deep mathematical intuition with engineering pragmatism. They know when to go deep on theory and when to run experiments. They read papers voraciously and can spot incremental contributions from genuine breakthroughs.
Across the 3,708 AI roles we're tracking, Research Scientist positions make up 3% of the market. At University of Illinois, this role fits into their broader AI and engineering organization.
Research Scientist roles are concentrated at major AI labs (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google DeepMind, Meta FAIR) and well-funded AI startups. The competition is intense. PhD is effectively required for most positions, and publication track record matters. Compensation is among the highest in AI, reflecting both the scarcity of talent and the strategic importance of research breakthroughs.
What the Work Looks Like
A typical week includes: reading and discussing recent papers with your team, designing and running experiments on multi-GPU clusters, analyzing results and iterating on hypotheses, writing up findings for internal review or publication, and collaborating with engineering teams to productionize promising results. The ratio of thinking to coding is higher than in engineering roles.
Research Scientist roles are concentrated at major AI labs (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google DeepMind, Meta FAIR) and well-funded AI startups. The competition is intense. PhD is effectively required for most positions, and publication track record matters. Compensation is among the highest in AI, reflecting both the scarcity of talent and the strategic importance of research breakthroughs.
Skills in Demand for This Role
PhD strongly preferred for most roles. Deep expertise in a specific area (NLP, computer vision, reinforcement learning, multimodal) is expected. PyTorch is the standard. Publication track record matters. Strong mathematical foundations in linear algebra, probability, optimization, and information theory are assumed.
Beyond the fundamentals, companies value experience with large-scale distributed training, novel architecture design, and the ability to bridge theory and practice. Understanding of current frontier topics (reasoning, multimodal, long-context, alignment) is essential. Code quality matters more than many researchers expect. Labs want researchers who can implement their ideas cleanly.
Strong research postings specify the research area, mention the team you'd join, and describe the problems they're working on. They often list recent publications from the team. Vague 'AI research' postings without specifics usually mean the company wants to sound impressive but doesn't have a real research agenda.
Compensation Benchmarks
Research Scientist roles pay a median of $222,200 based on 197 positions with disclosed compensation. Entry-level AI roles across all categories have a median of $120,000. This role's midpoint ($85K) sits 62% below the category median. Disclosed range: $80K to $90K.
Across all AI roles, the market median is $217,500. Top-quartile compensation starts at $272,100. The 90th percentile reaches $325,000. For comparison, the highest-paying categories include AI Safety ($300,000) and Research Engineer ($280,000). By seniority level: Entry: $120,000; Mid: $200,000; Senior: $230,000; Director: $272,150; VP: $250,000.
University of Illinois AI Hiring
University of Illinois has 2 open AI roles right now. They're hiring across Research Engineer, Research Scientist. Based in Urbana, IL, US. Compensation range: $90K - $100K.
Location Context
Across all AI roles, 14% (508 positions) offer remote work, while 3,180 require on-site attendance. Top AI hiring metros: New York (1,045 roles, $220,000 median); San Francisco (810 roles, $277,088 median); Los Angeles (397 roles, $215,000 median).
Career Path
Common paths into Research Scientist roles include PhD Student, Research Engineer, Postdoc.
From here, career progression typically leads toward Research Lead, Distinguished Scientist, VP of Research.
The PhD is the entry point for most paths. Choose your advisor and research area carefully since they'll define your first industry position. Publish consistently, contribute to open-source projects in your area, and build relationships at conferences. Industry research offers better compensation and compute resources than academia, but the pressure to show product impact is real.
What to Expect in Interviews
Research interviews are multi-stage: a research talk (present your best paper), technical deep-dives on your methodology, and often a 'research proposal' exercise where you design an experiment to test a hypothesis. Coding rounds test implementation ability alongside theoretical knowledge. Be prepared to implement a paper from scratch and discuss the design choices the authors made. Strong candidates can critique papers constructively and identify gaps in experimental methodology.
When evaluating opportunities: Strong research postings specify the research area, mention the team you'd join, and describe the problems they're working on. They often list recent publications from the team. Vague 'AI research' postings without specifics usually mean the company wants to sound impressive but doesn't have a real research agenda.
AI Hiring Overview
The AI job market has 3,708 open positions tracked in our dataset. By seniority: 102 entry-level, 1,705 mid-level, 1,469 senior, and 432 leadership roles (Director, VP, C-Level). Remote roles make up 14% of the market (508 positions). The remaining 3,180 roles require on-site or hybrid attendance.
The market median for AI roles is $217,500. Top-quartile compensation starts at $272,100. The 90th percentile reaches $325,000. Highest-paying categories: AI Safety ($300,000 median, 21 roles); Research Engineer ($280,000 median, 147 roles); AI Architect ($254,798 median, 67 roles).
Research Scientist roles are concentrated at major AI labs (OpenAI, Anthropic, Google DeepMind, Meta FAIR) and well-funded AI startups. The competition is intense. PhD is effectively required for most positions, and publication track record matters. Compensation is among the highest in AI, reflecting both the scarcity of talent and the strategic importance of research breakthroughs.
The AI Job Market Today
The AI job market spans 3,708 open positions across 16 role categories. The largest categories by volume: AI/ML Engineer (2,605), Data Scientist (310), AI Software Engineer (259). These three account for the majority of open positions, though smaller categories often have higher per-role compensation because of specialized skill requirements.
The seniority mix tells a story about where AI teams are in their maturity. Entry-level roles (102) are outnumbered by mid-level (1,705) and senior (1,469) positions, reflecting that most companies are past the 'build a team from scratch' phase and need experienced engineers who can ship production systems. Leadership roles (Director, VP, C-Level) total 432 positions, representing the bottleneck between technical execution and organizational strategy.
Remote work availability sits at 14% of all AI roles (508 positions), with 3,180 requiring on-site or hybrid attendance. The remote share has stabilized after the post-pandemic correction. Senior and specialized roles (Research Scientist, ML Architect) are more likely to be remote-eligible than entry-level positions, partly because experienced hires have more negotiating power and partly because these roles require less hands-on mentorship.
AI compensation is structured in clear tiers. The market median sits at $217,500. Top-quartile roles start at $272,100, and the 90th percentile reaches $325,000. These figures include base salary with disclosed compensation. Total compensation (including equity, bonuses, and sign-on) runs 20-40% higher at companies that offer those components.
Category matters for compensation. AI Safety roles lead at $300,000 median, while Prompt Engineer roles sit at $140,000. The spread between highest and lowest-paying categories reflects the premium on specialized technical skills versus broader analytical roles.
The most in-demand skills across all AI postings: Python (1,890 postings), Aws (1,103 postings), Azure (877 postings), Rag (855 postings), Gcp (631 postings), Prompt Engineering (560 postings), Pytorch (545 postings), Claude (498 postings). Python dominates, appearing in the vast majority of role descriptions regardless of category. Cloud platform experience (AWS, GCP, Azure) is the second most common requirement. The newer entrants to the top skills list (RAG, vector databases, LLM APIs) reflect the shift from traditional ML toward generative AI applications.
Frequently Asked Questions
Get Weekly AI Career Intelligence
Salary data, skills demand, and market signals from 16,000+ AI job postings. Every Monday.