Postdoctoral Researcher/Assistant Research Scientist (AI, Cybersecurity & High-Performance Computing)

Location: On campus in Killeen, Texas, United States. This is not a remote position; occasional weeknights and/or weekends may be required. Applicants must be authorized to work for any U.S. employer.

Salary: $80,000 annually; proposed minimum salary of $6,666.67 monthly.

Company

Texas A&M University–Central Texas is a public university within the Texas A&M University System, hosting the Center for Cybersecurity Innovation.

What you will do

• Lead or assist with the technical implementation, deployment, configuration, and operational rollout of a standalone multi-user HPC lab.
• Establish user onboarding protocols, multi-tenant resource management policies, and hardware access workflows for researchers and students.
• Architect, implement, and evaluate AI/ML frameworks involving agentic AI, deep learning, and privacy-preserving methods for cybersecurity threat detection and mitigation.
• Design and evaluate autonomous or multi-agent, tool-using LLM systems for threat hunting, incident triage and response, and vulnerability assessment.
• Conduct empirical evaluations and benchmark AI performance and privacy safeguards in realistic cybersecurity environments.
• Guide undergraduate and graduate research assistants and author manuscripts for peer-reviewed journals and top-tier conferences.

Requirements

• Earned doctorate in Computer Science, Computer Engineering, Information Systems, Software Engineering, Artificial Intelligence, Cybersecurity, or a closely related field, or an equivalent combination of education and related experience.
• Strong programming background in Python, C, and/or C++.
• High self-motivation, creativity, and a collaborative mindset.
• Authorization to work for any U.S. employer.

Nice to have

• 1–3 years of experience in cybersecurity, AI research, and/or HPC lab environments.
• Experience applying agentic AI, including autonomous or multi-agent, tool-using LLM systems, to threat detection, automated incident response, or vulnerability assessment.
• Hands-on proficiency with PyTorch, TensorFlow, Keras, and Jupyter.
• A record of peer-reviewed scientific publications.
• Experience conducting empirical evaluations, user studies, or usability assessments.

Culture & Benefits

• Collaborative, team-oriented research environment within the Center for Cybersecurity Innovation.
• Opportunity to contribute to a new open, high-capacity HPC facility for university researchers, faculty, and students.
• Position currently funded through a grant anticipated to end on November 22, 2027, with retention afterward if financially feasible.
• Monday–Friday schedule, generally 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m.
• All positions are security-sensitive and require a criminal history investigation and credential verification.

Hiring process

• Submit a cover letter, resume, and contact information for three professional references.
• Employment is contingent upon completion of required institutional checks and verification procedures.