Research Scientist

At Dow, we believe in putting people first and we’re passionate about delivering integrity, respect and safety to our customers, our employees and the planet.  

 

Our people are at the heart of our solutions. They reflect the communities we live in and the world where we do business. Their diversity is our strength. We’re a community of relentless problem solvers that offers the daily opportunity to contribute with your perspective, transform industries and shape the future. Our purpose is simple - to deliver a sustainable future for the world through science and collaboration. If you’re looking for a challenge and meaningful role, you’re in the right place.

About the role

Dow has an exciting opportunity for a Research Scientist in Reaction Engineering discipline within Enterprise Innovation & Growth, Advanced Development and Strategic Partnerships based in Lake Jackson, TX or Midland, MI. Reaction engineers utilize a balance of theory, experimentation, and modeling to understand the fundamentals of chemical reactions.  Modeling capabilities include molecular through full-scale production and utilize state of the art computational tools.  Experimental work uses highly automated tubular, fixed bed, and stirred tank systems, including single-pass and recycle fixed beds with online gas chromatography, and stirred tank reactors equipped with various analytical techniques from in-situ Raman and FTIR to heat flow calorimetry. The successful candidate will be an expert in one or more areas of experimental, computations, and theoretical capabilities as it pertains to Reaction Engineering.

About You

• You are a self-motivated scientist who thrives in a collaborative environment and can independently manage and execute research programs.
• You demonstrate strong leadership, initiative, teamwork, and interpersonal skills, coupled with excellent prioritization and organizational capabilities.
• You apply engineering principles, scientific methodology, and computational tools to design and execute experimental programs, develop and validate reaction and reactor models, and solve complex technical challenges.
• You are comfortable working across both laboratory and modeling environments, leveraging experimental data, first-principles understanding, statistics, and simulation tools to generate actionable insights and accelerate technology development.
• You have a strong commitment to integrating safety into all aspects of experimental design and execution and work effectively with technicians, scientists, engineers, and business stakeholders to deliver results that support Dow's strategic objectives.
• You are also an effective communicator who maintains high-quality technical documentation through laboratory notebooks, technical reports, presentations, and publications.

Your Key Responsibilities / Duties:

• Define and conduct research projects using advanced knowledge of scientific principles, theory and experimental design across adjacent scientific disciplines.

• Develop and implement technical solutions through hands-on experimentation/problem-solving for research problems that are well defined within a project area.

• Consistently apply the Scientific Method in the planning and execution of experimental plans and problem solving. Formulate hypotheses and develop experimental plans to test hypotheses.

• Leverage Six Sigma tools and methodology to solve complex problems with projects of regional or global scope.

• Define, design, and implement novel experimental and computational capabilities.

• Communicate clearly and effectively in a timely manner (verbal and written formats) and document work as technical reports, presentations, and publications.

• Keep current with developments in relevant area of technology and identify and implement applications which will benefit Dow. Have an in-depth understanding of the patent and journal literature across related areas of technology. Understand and incorporate the competitive landscape in technology mapping. Work with legal department to manage IP and secure freedom to practice and patent new technologies.

• Influence external technology development through publications, patents and presentations.

• Build strong partnerships with R&D, manufacturing, and business teams to align research activities with strategic objectives and identify new growth opportunities.

• Serve on multi-disciplinary project teams to collaborate, provide technical input, and deliver results aligned with team deliverables.

• Understand and follow appropriate EH&S standards, policies and procedures applicable to their job. Lead by example in safety behaviors by promoting safe work habits.

• Mentor junior level scientists and technologists on project execution and communication

Qualifications

• PhD in Chemical Engineering required.

• Minimum 3 years of relevant industry/field experience required. 5 or more years preferred.

• Demonstrated value creation across multiple disciplines and organizations

• Demonstrated understanding of statistical parameter estimation and model discrimination

• A minimum requirement for this U.S. based position is the ability to work legally in the United States.  No visa sponsorship/support is available for this position, including for any type of U.S. permanent residency (green card) process

Note: This position may require up to 10% travel.

Skills

• Innovation and technical acumen: Strong understanding of phase equilibrium, heat and mass transfer, reactor contacting patterns, reaction kinetics, and reactor modeling. Expertise in process simulation and modeling with platforms such as Aspen Plus, Python, Athena Visual, and Matlab.

• Interpersonal and communication skills: Proven excellent ability to collaborate with stakeholders in various business functions (sales, marketing, TS&D, etc) as well as external customers. . Active Listening to understand customer needs, collaborating with teams, and responding thoughtfully.

• Collaboration and Operational Efficiency: Demonstrated ability to both lead and be a team player, in planning and executing projects with cross-functional teams and resources to achieve maximum productivity towards decisions or milestones in a timely manner. Ability to write code including custom modules for process simulators and/or scripting for analysis of simulation results

• Documentation: Demonstrated background in intellectual property including patent filing, competitive analysis, prior art searches. Strong track record of innovation documentation in journals and patents

Note: this position does not offer relocation assistance.

Benefits – What Dow offers you 

We invest in you. 
 

Dow invests in total rewards programs to help you manage all aspects of you: your pay, your health, your life, your future, and your career. You bring your background, talent, and perspective to work every day. Dow rewards that commitment by investing in your total wellbeing.  

Here are just a few highlights of what you would be offered as a Dow employee: 

• Equitable and market-competitive base pay and bonus opportunity across our global markets, along with locally relevant incentives. 
• Benefits and programs to support your physical, mental, financial, and social well-being, to help you get the care you need...when you need it. 
• Competitive retirement program that may include company-provided benefits, savings opportunities, financial planning, and educational resources to help you achieve your long term financial-goals. 
  • Employee stock purchase programs (availability varies depending on location).
• Student Debt Retirement Savings Match Program (U.S. only).
  • Dow will take the value of monthly student debt payments and apply them as if they are contributions to the Employees’ Savings Plan (401(k)), helping employees reach the Company match.
• Robust medical and life insurance packages that offer a variety of coverage options to meet your individual needs. Travel insurance is also available in certain countries/locations.
• Opportunities to learn and grow through training and mentoring, work experiences, community involvement and team building. 
• Workplace culture empowering role-based flexibility to maximize personal productivity and balance personal needs. 
• Competitive yearly vacation allowance.
• Paid time off for new parents (birthing and non-birthing, including adoptive and foster parents).  
• Paid time off to care for family members who are sick or injured.  
• Paid time off to support volunteering and Employee Resource Group’s (ERG) participation. 
• Wellbeing Portal for all Dow employees, our one-stop shop to promote wellbeing, empowering employees to take ownership of their entire wellbeing journey.
• On-site fitness facilities to help stay healthy and active (availability varies depending on location).
• Employee discounts for online shopping, cinema tickets, gym memberships and more.
• Additionally, some of our locations might offer:
  • Transportation allowance (availability varies depending on location)
  • Meal subsidiaries/vouchers (availability varies depending on location)
  • Carbon-neutral transportation incentives e.g. bike to work (availability varies depending on location)

Join our team, we can make a difference together.

About Dow
Dow (NYSE: DOW) is one of the world’s leading materials science companies, serving customers in high-growth markets such as packaging, infrastructure, mobility and consumer applications. Our global breadth, asset integration and scale, focused innovation, leading business positions and commitment to sustainability enable us to achieve profitable growth and help deliver a sustainable future. We operate manufacturing sites in 30 countries and employ approximately 36,000 people. Dow delivered sales of approximately $43 billion in 2024. References to Dow or the Company mean Dow Inc. and its subsidiaries. ​​​​Learn more about us and our ambition to be the most innovative, customer-centric, inclusive and sustainable materials science company in the world by visiting www.dow.com.

As part of our dedication to inclusion, Dow is committed to equal opportunities in employment. We encourage every employee to bring their whole self to work each day to not only deliver more value, but also have a more fulfilling career. Further information regarding Dow's equal opportunities is available on www.dow.com.

Dow is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer and is committed to providing opportunities without regard for race, color, religion, sex, including pregnancy, sexual orientation, or gender identity, national origin, age, disability and genetic information, including family medical history. We are also committed to providing reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities and disabled veterans in our job application procedures. If you need assistance or an accommodation due to a disability, you may call us at 1-833-My Dow HR (833-693-6947) and select option 8.