Senior Research Associate II – AI/ML Underwater Video

About the role

The Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Studies (CIMAS) at the University of Miami seeks a Senior Research Associate II to lead AI‑driven analysis of underwater video collected during fisheries‑independent surveys. The position supports NOAA Fisheries’ Southeast Fisheries Science Center Advanced Technology Branch and will be based at a NOAA facility in Galveston, TX; Pascagoula, MS; Miami, FL; or Beaufort, NC, with telework flexibility.

Key responsibilities

• Participate in fisheries‑independent surveys and oversee deployment of underwater imaging systems.
• Develop and implement AI/ML pipelines to detect, track, and classify fish in video datasets.
• Curate annotation libraries, train and evaluate models using VIAME and other open‑source tools.
• Prepare technical reports, presentations, and contribute to peer‑reviewed manuscripts.

Required profile

• Master’s degree or higher in biological sciences or a related field.
• At least one year of experience with fisheries‑independent surveys and AI/ML applications to underwater video.
• Proven ability to work collaboratively in a respectful, inclusive team environment.
• Strong organizational and communication skills.

Required skills

• Experience with VIAME software or comparable open‑source AI/ML platforms.
• Proficiency in building and evaluating machine‑learning models for video data.
• Knowledge of underwater video data collection and fish identification methods.