Careers at Virginia Tech

The Virginia Tech Transportation Institute (VTTI) conducts research to save lives, time, and money and protect the environment. As one of six premier research institutes created by Virginia Tech to answer national challenges, VTTI is continually advancing transportation through innovation and has affected public policy on national and international levels. This position provides a hands-on opportunity to work with cutting edge vehicle and roadway lighting technologies through systematic deployment and testing. Watch this video to learn more about what it’s like to work at VTTI! (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nj4VWviw5JA)

VTTI seeks a qualified senior research associate with a PhD in Engineering/Statistics with safety analysis and/or transportation safety specialization including but not limited degrees in Civil Engineering, Transportation Engineering, Human Factors etc. (candidates with a lesser degree and significant experience in lieu of PhD may be considered). The ideal candidate is an experienced researcher capable leading research projects and working collaboratively in multidisciplinary teams to improve transportation safety through cutting edge research.

This position independently plans, schedules, conducts, or coordinates detailed tasks as part of major transportation infrastructure safety projects. Work performed involves engineering practice but may include a variety of complex features such as conflicting design requirements, unsuitability of conventional materials, and difficult coordination requirements. The ideal candidate can contribute to research conceptualization, proposal development, and resource acquisition as well as interact with sponsors, interprets findings, prepare reports, and present results. Work will primarily focus on transportation safety projects that include traffic safety, accident databases, safety modeling (including safety performance functions and crash mitigation factors), roadway design, intersection and pedestrian safety, traffic control/operation devices, driver behavior, traffic theory and human factors. Work requires a broad knowledge of precedents in the specialty area and a good knowledge of and practices of related specialties.

Duties and responsibilities:
• Act as Principal Investigator on funded research projects
• Write, review, and critique proposals, research plans, and final reports
• Organize, attend, and participate in project meetings
• Conceptualize and write work plans
• Manage project activities and execution of research plan
• Supervise students, junior researchers and waged employees as needed
• Respond to requests for proposal and obtain funding with the goal of providing sustainable support for themselves and other researchers
• Analyze data including preparing SAS, Matlab, ArcGIS and SQL analyses
• Present research findings
• Collaborate on research studies as needed

Directions given and received:
• Independently perform most assignments with instructions as to the general results expected
• Receive technical guidance on unusual or complex problems and supervisory approval on proposed plans for projects

• PhD in Engineering/Statistics with safety analysis and/or transportation safety specialization including but not limited degrees in Civil Engineering, Transportation Engineering, Human Factors etc. (candidates with a lesser degree and significant experience in lieu of PhD may be considered).
• Excellent communications and organizational skills
• Strong experience in transportation safety related research
• Ability to lead project teams and oversee project schedule, budgets, and deliverables
• Demonstrated strong writing and organizational skills
• Solid understanding of engineering principles needed to analyze, verify, and interpret work
• Strong GIS based Data Analysis experience.
• Strong statistical methods including experience in the analysis of large scale data sets from multiple sources using a variety of tools including but not limited to SAS, MatLab, ArcGIS, SQL Server
• Previous project management experience including coordinate technicians, researchers, undergraduate and graduate level students

• Knowledge on transportation safety tools such as the highway safety manual, crash modification factors, safety performance functions, and strategic safety plans is extremely desirable.

Restricted

Starting rate of $90,000; commensurate with experience

2/21/2025

The successful candidate will be required to have a criminal conviction check.

Dedicated to its motto, Ut Prosim (That I May Serve), Virginia Tech pushes the boundaries of knowledge by taking a hands-on, transdisciplinary approach to preparing scholars to be leaders and problem-solvers. A comprehensive land-grant institution that enhances the quality of life in Virginia and throughout the world, Virginia Tech is an inclusive community dedicated to knowledge, discovery, and creativity. The university offers more than 280 majors to a diverse enrollment of more than 36,000 undergraduate, graduate, and professional students in eight undergraduate colleges, a school of medicine, a veterinary medicine college, Graduate School, and Honors College. The university has a significant presence across Virginia, including the Innovation Campus in Northern Virginia; the Health Sciences and Technology Campus in Roanoke; sites in Newport News and Richmond; and numerous Extension offices and research centers. A leading global research institution, Virginia Tech conducts more than $500 million in research annually.

Virginia Tech endorses and encourages participation in professional development opportunities and university shared governance.  These valuable contributions to university shared governance provide important representation and perspective, along with opportunities for unique and impactful professional development.