Every Friday, I break down real meteorology job postings and cover what the role actually involves, what employers are really looking for, and how to position yourself to get hired. Experience in energy, aviation, agricultural commodities, transportation, outdoor recreation, and event forecasting. Free, every Friday
The Friday Job Report - Week 25
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Issued on the 19th of June, 2026 Quick heads up before we get into the report. You are receiving the Friday Job Report from a new home, as I switched from Kajabi to Kit. I will use Kit to build out a website to offer private coaching, build courses, and potentially build out a better way to get on-the-job experience that leads to getting a job. The first course coming is How to Become an Energy Meteorologist. If that's something you'd want to know more about, reply and tell me. I'm gauging interest before I open enrollment. Now to the Friday Job Report Back to getting a job, recently I interviewed for a side hustle type of remote meteorology role, and I'm at the point in my career where my confidence in doing an interview is so high that I went into the interview with no prep at all. I landed a second interview. This is where I want you to get to, so you can go into that conversation and really deliver the selling points that will get you the job. Mock interviews are all about practicing with a real meteorologist who can then give you direct feedback. I realize that if you either absolutely hate your current job, or just graduated and have not found a job yet, or were laid off, then for you, each interview matters immensely. However, even when I was laid off, I found that I performed the best when I had practiced what I would say for the HR type questions, over and over, so much that they would not trip me up and were normalized for all interviews. By having the HR questions out of the way, I am free to focus on the harder, more technical questions that really matter. I think the TLDR is practice, practice, and practice again, so when you get an interview, you focus on what matters the most. The JobsUSA JobsIndustry: Operational Meteorology Title: Operational Meteorologist Company: Roadrunner Ventures Studios (they are the funder, but the actual company may have a different name) Work Location: Albuquerque, New Mexico, with field work Pay: None Given Benefits: See Job Listing Degree:
Years of Experience:
Key Skills or Knowledge: (You should be able to do these duties)
Who Should Apply? If you are a meteorologist, whether experienced or early in your career, I would apply for this role. I would point out that it says startup culture. This means you will work hard from start to finish each day, and you will often work amid greater ambiguity in your job, with the expectation that you will help the company make great strides toward success. You should love to be in a challenging role with constant problems to solve. The good thing is that even though the pay is not mentioned, normally, startups pay very well. If you are a city person, you may find this location to be a struggle. If you are from a small town or like the outdoors, you are more likely to enjoy this sort of location. About the Location Albuquerque, New Mexico, is a great location for people who enjoy being out in the weather and not near a big city. You should enjoy the outdoors to a degree and a drier sort of climate. I have not been to Albuquerque as much as I have to Santa Fe and Taos to the north, but there is a lot to explore. The Rio Grande River flows from the Texas/Mexico border northward through Albuquerque and even north into Colorado. Just east of the city is the Sandia Crest, which you can take a tram to the top of, and which has snow skiing. Outside of the city, there are Hatch chilies, White Sands, Hot Springs, aliens, caverns, low rider cars, fly fishing, and more. Industry: Low Altitude Aviation Title: Head of Weather Intelligence (There is another posting for Head of Weather Systems) Company: Zipline Work Location: San Francisco, California Pay: $185,000 - $255,000 per year Benefits: See Job Listing Degree:
Years of Experience:
Key Skills or Knowledge: (You should be able to do these duties)
Who Should Apply? You are basically a software engineer + meteorologist, so if that is you, and I definitely have met some of you through My Met Job, then you should apply. You will help build the capabilities of their drone software so it can handle the numerous weather variables present at low altitude. Think of a hot day, and you are landing in a passenger plane. Think how bumpy it can be due to thermal-induced turbulence. Drones fly at lower altitudes and in different terrain where there are buildings, radio towers, and varying terrain, which likely creates an entirely different setup for turbulence and wind flow. In San Francisco, there is the coastal stratus, which can be at the level of the drone, creating a visibility issue as well. If you, as a meteorologist, want a real challenge, then consider this role. You definitely need the coding chops to work in this position, as that is the second thing on the list of what they want, which is your programming knowledge, and you don't even get to meteorology knowledge until the 8th bullet. About the Location San Francisco is expensive. This job pays a lot, partly for that reason, but also because they are a startup with investor cash, and this position plays a critical role in the type of services they provide. While San Francisco is expensive, I love the area as a former resident of nearby San Jose. I had so much fun exploring the city and the surrounding region. You can get around without a car in the city. I used Zipcar when I needed a car, but for a while I was car-free. I only bought one to drive on the windy mountain roads through the redwoods to the beach in Santa Cruz. I can still taste the ice cream at Penny's while sitting on my favorite California beach, mostly because I had the beach to myself most days. Anyway, it's super duper expensive, but consider this: when I worked there, my annual salary was 80% lower than what they are offering, and I made it work. Industry: Wildfire Meteorology Title: Meteorology Fire Scientist Company: Slalom Work Location: Los Angeles, California Pay: $54 - $74 per hour (contract to permanent) ($60 per hour is $124,800 per year) Benefits: See Job Listing Degree:
Years of Experience:
Key Skills or Knowledge: (You should be able to do these duties)
Who Should Apply? Another startup in California, but this one is completely different from the one above. For one, they are working with an LA-based utility or two and provide fire weather forecasting along with extreme weather for infrastructure impacts. The job is on-site in the LA area, and there is no mention of hybrid. However, you should count on working in person, often long hours, and possibly at night during active wildfires. If you are an early-career professional and you want to learn about mountain meteorology, wildfires, and electricity, then this is the job you should consider. It is a great opportunity. About the Location I've only been a few times, but I like LA, as a big city, like a thousand times more than Chicago, Boston, or New York City. It is spread out over a huge area, and then there are the mountains and the ocean. It can be 61 F / 16 C at LAX and in Palm Springs, just east of the mountains, 110 F / 43 C. It is all about the onshore/offshore pressure gradient and winds. Onshore flow pushes the marine layer in, and offshore pushes it off into the ocean. During Santa Ana, the marine layer is both suppressed and offshore, and the downslope flow of the winds can push places like Long Beach to hit 110 F / 43 C. Don't make the mistake of visiting the LA beaches in the summer. It will be very cold. Go in August - October and the offshore flow is more likely, and temperatures will be in the 80s F / 20s/30s C. Industry: Wildfire Meteorology Title: Principal Meteorologist Company: Slalom Work Location: Los Angeles, California Pay: $58 - $98 per hour (contract to permanent) ($80 per hour is $166,400 per year) Benefits: See Job Listing Degree:
Years of Experience:
Key Skills or Knowledge: (You should be able to do these duties)
Who Should Apply? Same company as above, Slalom, but this role is for the head person, technically above the wildfire scientist. They are asking for a CCM, and while that is something you can try to pursue if you want, I've only worked with one CCM, and that person was super smart about meteorology, but I've worked with plenty of really good meteorologists who will never be a CCM. If you don't have that certification but you have the experience for this role, then apply and see what they say. About the Location One of the coolest things about Los Angeles is what you can find outside the city. The entire region is enclosed by mountains, with skiing and snowboarding possible at Big Bear Lake, only 2 hours (in good traffic) from downtown Los Angeles. At the same time, you could rock climb in Joshua Tree National Park, hike up Mount San Jacinto and then ride the tram back down into Palm Springs, or in the Spring, attend the Coachella music festival. You could drive a little further to experience extreme heat in Death Valley, massive trees in Sequoia, a raging river in Kings Canyon, or be awestruck by the waterfalls in Yosemite. Pinnacles National Park is also about a 4-hour drive north, and if you are heading that direction, you should go see Big Sur and Monterey. Closer to home, a short boat ride will take you to Channel Islands National Park or Catalina Island, where you can take a touristy submarine to view the prolific kelp forests. This is just touching the surface of the things to do in and around Los Angeles. Industry: Meteorology Data Collection Title: Mesonet Weather Station Tech Company: New Mexico State University Conferences Work Location: Las Cruces, New Mexico Pay: $21.11 per hour or $43,908 per year Benefits: See Job Listing Closes: 9th of July, 2026 Degree:
Years of Experience:
Key Skills or Knowledge: (You should be able to do these duties)
Who Should Apply? All entry-level that are interested in getting hands-on work with a skill that you can apply when applying for future roles. I have personally done maintenance on a weather station as part of my position as a road weather meteorologist. In my case, I helped calibrate equipment each spring or summer across Utah and helped install one solar-powered station that was out in the middle of nowhere. This role is grant-funded or something like that, as it reads, and so if they don't get the money, the future of the position may end. However, if I were a Junior or Senior in college or just starting after college, I would treat this as an internship. About the Location Las Cruces, New Mexico, is pretty close to El Paso and a college town, so it won't be completely void of things to do, but it will be a small-town atmosphere in the desert of southern New Mexico. Other than the world's largest chili pepper, it is fairly close to 3 National Parks in White Sands, Guadalupe Mountains, and Carlsbad Caverns, and a day's drive to Big Bend National Park. It's only 3 lonely hours to the aliens in Roswell. I've done this drive, and it's not all that interesting unless you like solitude; then it's great. International Jobs (Outside the US)Industry: Operational Meteorology Title: Consultant Meteorologist Company: MetraWeather Work Location: UK - Remote Pay: None Listed Benefits: See Job Listing Contract: 12-months Degree:
Years of Experience:
Key Skills or Knowledge: (most important to the company)
Duties You Should Be Able to Perform (for a lack of qualifications)
Who Should Apply? If you are a UK citizen or have the right to work in the UK. This is a great job as the company itself is based in New Zealand, but they are a global company, and so you are going to be forecasting for all types of customers and in multiple fields, which will build your experience. Plus, you can work remotely, so from the beach, mountains, or just at home as long as you have an Internet connection. Industry: Modeling / Research / Climate Title: Regional Climate and Anticipatory Modeling Specialist Company: Action Against Hunger Work Location: Kenya, Somalia, Ethiopia Pay: None Listed Benefits: See Job Listing Requirements: Must have the right to work in the work locations. Degree:
Years of Experience:
Key Skills or Knowledge: (most important to the company)
These are a few of the requirements. Who Should Apply? If you are located in eastern Africa or have worked in these countries and can get a work visa on your own. This is a chance to work for a group where your meteorology knowledge can be used to save or improve people's lives. Final Thoughts As a road weather meteorologist, I worked in a variety of jobs from predicting icing conditions in Nova Scotia, Canada, waking up a supervisor at JFK airport to warn him the previous forecast from the day shift was incorrect and there would in fact be freezing drizzle and they should treat the runways, and I worked with snow plow drivers handling at times up to 6 inches / 15 cm per hour snow rates in the mountains outside Salt Lake City. I even predicted conditions favorable for avalanches in a remote part of British Columbia. These are all different ways in which road weather forecasting methods were utilized. The thing about road weather that makes it extra difficult, especially in the mountains, is that the road itself can behave wildly differently depending on the material it is made from, such as asphalt vs. concrete, and whether or not it's a bridge or a steep mountain canyon. When you see the signs that bridges freeze first, you are seeing a simple message that is much more complex as a meteorologist, where the cooling rates can change with each storm, and it is your job to decide how each storm would impact the routes under your responsibility. It is even harder in the mountains, where radar data is less helpful, and especially in places like British Columbia, the Coquihalla Highway has no radar data, but is a major route, one that used to have a TV show due to all the crashes. Try forecasting a snow squall that you can only see on satellite, and where you have to use a road camera with a delay and microclimate case studies to have any chance. Road weather forecasting doesn't share the limelight with energy, aviation, or even agriculture, but plays a big role in how people and cargo move around. I was a road weather meteorologist for 6 years. Hope this helps. Good luck on the job search! |
Scott Patterson
Every Friday, I break down real meteorology job postings and cover what the role actually involves, what employers are really looking for, and how to position yourself to get hired. Experience in energy, aviation, agricultural commodities, transportation, outdoor recreation, and event forecasting. Free, every Friday