Research Associate

Job Title

Research Associate

Agency

Texas A&M University Health Science Center

Department

Medical Physiology

Proposed Minimum Salary

Commensurate

Job Location

Bryan, Texas

Job Type

Staff

Job Description

What we want

The Research Associate performs independent research activities requiring an advanced level of knowledge in a field of science or learning and required consistent use of discretion and judgement. The Research Associate will serve as a lead systems and hardware engineer responsible for the design, development, integration, testing, and deployment of spaceflight and high-reliability experimental payloads. This role spans mechanical, electrical, embedded software, and systems engineering domains and supports flight and flight-like hardware across multiple concurrent projects. The position requires end-to-end ownership of engineering deliverables, compliance with commercial and government flight partner requirements, and a commitment to rigorous engineering processes appropriate for mission-critical environments.

What you need to know

Required Education and Experience

• Bachelor's degree in Electrical Engineering, or a closely related field.

• Two years of hands-on experience in a research, flight hardware, or advanced engineering development environment involving multidisciplinary hardware systems.
  

Preferred Qualifications

• Demonstrated experience in the design, integration, testing, and troubleshooting of complex electronic and/or electro-mechanical systems.

• Direct experience supporting hardware integration with external engineering teams, industry partners, or flight/vehicle integrators.

• Demonstrated experience translating research-driven experimental platforms into operational hardware, including working effectively with both academic researchers and professional engineering teams.

• Experience integrating experiment and test platforms developed in academic environments into operational or flight-like systems.

• Experience participating in environmental and qualification testing (e.g., thermal, vibration, shock, vacuum, or related test campaigns), including test setup, execution, and data review.

• Experience with hardware bring-up, instrumentation, data acquisition, and system-level debugging in a lab or field environment.

• Familiarity with engineering documentation practices, including schematics, test procedures, integration notes, and configuration records.

• Ability to work independently in a fast-paced, prototype-to-deployment environment while coordinating closely with faculty, students, and external partners.

• Strong organizational skills and the ability to manage multiple hardware efforts in parallel.

• Prior experience working on spaceflight, high-altitude, or other high-reliability platforms.

• Experience working on-site with a commercial or government aerospace partner for hardware integration or testing campaigns.

• Experience with embedded systems, firmware development, or hardware/software interfaces.

• Experience with environmental test facilities and procedures (thermal, vibration, vacuum, EMI/EMC, etc.).

• Experience with PCB design, board bring-up, harnessing, and system integration.

• Familiarity with CAD for enclosure or fixture design and/or rapid prototyping workflows.

• Experience supporting formal engineering reviews (e.g., PDR, CDR, TRR, FRR) or equivalent research-to-flight readiness processes.

Responsibilities

ESystems, Mechanical, & Electrical Engineering

• Serve as lead systems and hardware engineer for spaceflight and high-reliability experimental payloads spanning mechanical, electrical, and software domains.

• Lead the full engineering lifecycle: requirements interpretation, architecture development, detailed design, prototyping, fabrication, integration, testing, verification, and deployment.

• Design and develop mechanical structures, enclosures, fixtures, and payload assemblies using CAD tools, rapid prototyping workflows, and vendor fabrication processes.

• Design, integrate, and debug electronic systems including power distribution, sensors, data acquisition, communications, and embedded control architectures.

• Develop and maintain embedded firmware and/or host-side software for experiment control, data acquisition, health monitoring, and test automation.

• Lead hardware bring-up, integration, and verification activities including wiring, harnessing, PCB bring-up, fault isolation, and performance validation.

• Ensure designs meet structural, thermal, vibration, integration, and mission-environment constraints appropriate for flight and flight-like systems.

• Interface directly with commercial and government flight partners to ensure compliance with Interface Control Documents (ICDs), safety requirements, verification plans, and mission constraints.

• Contribute to and help enforce a strong culture of engineering rigor, including structured design reviews, disciplined test practices, documentation standards, and risk management.
  

Integration, Test & Verification

• Plan, execute, and document environmental and qualification testing (e.g., vibration, shock, thermal, vacuum, EMI/EMC as applicable).

• Develop test readiness reviews, procedures, anomaly reports, and corrective action documentation.

• Lead troubleshooting, root-cause analysis, and corrective actions for hardware, firmware, and system-level issues encountered during integration and testing.

• Support payload integration campaigns, acceptance testing, shipment, and on-site or remote mission support as required.
  

Documentation, Compliance & Configuration Management

• Produce and maintain engineering documentation including requirements specifications, ICDs, schematics, CAD models, test plans, procedures, as-built configurations, and verification & validation records.

• Manage configuration control, hardware inventories, spares, and lifecycle tracking across multiple flight projects.

• Coordinate technical procurement, vendor fabrication, PCB assembly, and external manufacturing workflows.

• Ensure compliance with institutional, sponsor, and partner requirements including safety, quality assurance, configuration management, and export control.
  

Continuous Improvement

• Identify and implement improvements to engineering processes, design standards, and test infrastructure.

• Support scalability of engineering operations to accommodate a growing portfolio of flight experiments and hardware systems.

All positions are security-sensitive. Applicants are subject to a criminal history investigation, and employment is contingent upon the institution’s verification of credentials and/or other information required by the institution’s procedures, including the completion of the criminal history check.

Equal Opportunity/Veterans/Disability Employer.