Climate & Global Change Postdoctoral Program Recruitment Announcement

Applications have closed

The UCAR Cooperative Programs for the Advancement of Earth System Science (CPAESS) is pleased to announce that the NOAA Climate and Global Change Postdoctoral Fellowship Program is seeking applications for the 2024 appointments. The fellowship program has an outstanding reputation for attracting the best and the brightest PhDs in the sciences relevant to the NOAA Climate and Global Change Program.

This prestigious NOAA-sponsored program appoints fellows that are hosted by a mentoring scientist at a U.S. university or research institution to work in an area of mutual interest.

The objective of the program is to help create the next generation of leaders in climate research. It endeavors to attract recent PhDs in sciences that address studies with relevance to the NOAA climate research goals.

The desired research areas focus on observing, understanding, modeling, and predicting climate variability, change, and impacts on seasonal and longer time scales. This includes the documentation and analysis of past, current, or possible future climate variability and change, as well as the study of the underlying Earth Systems processes, including physical-, chemical-, biological-, and/or coupled human-systems processes.

• Preference is given to new graduates who are seeking their first fellowship.
• Candidates must hold a PhD for no more than three years.

Awardees must change institutions, in the absence of compelling circumstances, and identify a host at a U.S. institution. A clearly articulated research proposal is particularly important. A steering committee, broadly representing the areas covered by this program, makes recommendations to CPAESS for appointments. The selection criteria used by the steering committee in making the awards may be found at Selection Criteria & Program Policies.

• Deadline for submissions: Applications have closed.

How Postdoctorates Apply

Please go to our How Postdoctorates Apply page for details on how to apply for the 2024 Class. (Advanced contact with a potential host is required.)

How Hosting Institutions Apply

Potential host scientists are required to submit a letter of intent, curriculum vitae, mentoring plan, and a list of current and pending research support as part of the selection process. Hosts are expected to mentor the fellow, provide a reasonable office environment, a computer workstation, and any other unique research costs.

CPAESS manages this program for NOAA. Appointed fellows become UCAR employees and receive a fixed annual salary plus UCAR’s employment benefits (health, vision and dental insurance, paid time off, paid holidays, TIAA retirement fund, and life insurance). A lump sum relocation allowance and an allowance for travel and publications during the appointment are provided. 

Appointed fellows are expected to attend and participate in a biennial Summer Institute to share results of their diverse research, develop a sense of community, and discuss the future directions of climate science. Fellows are also invited to attend a lunch gathering at the annual AGU meetings.

NOAA C&GC Question and Answer Session

A Q&A Session with your application questions was held on Wednesday, October 25th, 2023.

For further information please contact Kate Rodd at krodd@ucar.edu or Cindy Bruyère at bruyerec@ucar.edu.

The NOAA Climate Program Office sponsors this program.