Staff Archaeologist

SWCA Environmental Consultants is looking for a Staff Archaeologist to join our Mid-Atlantic Cultural Resources team based in Philadelphia, PA. Our team of accomplished environmental and cultural resources scientists is growing, and we are looking for dynamic individuals who are following their passion in delivering the highest-quality cultural resources work.

Under the supervision of a Cultural Resources Lead, this position will perform office and field tasks while working with and supervising crew members. In this role, you will assist a variety of office and field-based tasks. Office tasks including laboratory work, the preparation of site forms, and technical reports. Field tasks include managing all aspects of fieldwork, supervising one or more crews of archaeological technicians during survey, site recording, monitoring, or excavation projects.

This is a regular (with benefits), hourly, full-time opportunity reporting to our Philadelphia, PA office.

Application deadline: Application materials will be due at 5:00 PM EDT on April 27, 2026

• Assist with office-based tasks, including laboratory work, performing literature reviews, research, site form preparation, and technical report preparation, as needed;
• Work independently in a responsible manner, within defined schedules, and meet deadlines;
• Communicate effectively when reporting to Project Archaeologists, Principal Investigators, clients, and client representatives in the field, such as land agents, to facilitate successful project planning and logistics;
• Ensure that appropriate preliminary research is conducted and organized before fieldwork, and that necessary equipment, staff, and other resources are ready for fieldwork;
• Accurately identify historic-era and precontact artifacts and features, and train less experienced field crew members in their identification.
• Adheres to the safety program and looks out for the safety of others, promptly communicating and mitigating safety hazards.
• As a staff archaeologist, depending upon the project, an element of your job may be to independently supervise an archaeological survey crew in the field. This includes:
• independently assigning and directing the activities of others on behalf of SWCA, often in remote areas without immediate guidance from senior managers, to ensure quality and on-time delivery;
• ensuring that employees understand their responsibilities and delegated tasks and being held accountable if crew members under your supervision are not performing their activities correctly, productively, and safely;
• serving as a conduit of communication between employees and senior managers, including communicating issues to relevant senior managers;
• receiving and resolving complaints from employees in the field; and
• monitoring team productivity and providing timely performance feedback, including deciding when disciplinary action is necessary and delivering discipline.

Required Qualifications

• A master's degree in anthropology, archaeology, or a closely related field
• One (2) years of experience conducting field assessments with a cultural resources focus
• Current valid driver's license and the ability to safely operate a 4wd vehicle on rugged, backcountry roads
• Ability to travel to a location, walk and conduct fieldwork for long hours, sometimes in inclement weather, rugged terrain, and ability to carry equipment and supplies weighing up to 40 pounds
• Ability and willingness to work at least 75% of the time in the field

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with a range of field methodologies, including survey, testing, excavation, and monitoring highly preferred
• Meets the qualifications of a Secretary of the Interior Qualified Archaeologist
• An accredited Field School Certification

SWCA Environmental Consultants is a growing employee-owned firm, providing a full-spectrum of environmental services. Our Vision (the North Star) is to make SWCA the best workplace and industry leader in sustainability, bringing sound science and creative solutions to global environmental challenges while maintaining a dedication to employee-ownership. We live our core values: we collaborate as #OneSWCA; we are #AlwaysLearning, we #NeverSettle, and we #GiveBack.

We are 100% employee-owned, and we build our success together. With offices across the United States, SWCA is one of the largest environmental compliance firms and ranks among Engineering News-Record's Top 200 Environmental Firms. We offer a supportive, team-oriented work environment and competitive wages and benefits, including an 100% employee stock ownership plan (retirement).

At SWCA, we support our team members in developing their careers to make them leaders in their industry. Our Career Landscape initiative is a process and guide designed to help develop chart rewarding career paths for employees at SWCA. We encourage professional conference attendance, internal and external professional development and training programs, education reimbursement, and bonuses for publications meeting certain criteria. All regular status employees are eligible to participate in SWCA medical, dental, vision, employee assistance, wellness, life and disability plans, and are eligible to participate in the SWCA 401(k) Profit Sharing Plan and Trust.

If you would like to contact SWCA regarding the accessibility of our website or need assistance completing the online application process due to a disability, please email accommodations@swca.com or call 1-480-581-5378. This contact information is for disability accommodation requests only. All other inquiries will not receive a response.

EOE - women, minorities, individuals with disabilities and veterans are encouraged to apply. At SWCA Environmental Consultants, we celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive work environment. We strongly encourage candidates from all backgrounds, including those with diverse experiences and veterans, to apply. We believe that a diverse and inclusive workforce enhances creativity, innovation, and overall organizational success.

SWCA is committed to salary equity and salary transparency for all its employees. In alignment with this commitment, SWCA posts good faith pay ranges in all its advertised job postings to promote pay equity and transparency.

An employee in this Philadelphia, PA- based position can expect a rate of: $23.93/hour to $30.64/hour. Actual pay within this range may depend on experience, qualifications, geographic location, client requirements where applicable, and other factors permitted by law. Regular-status employees are also eligible for performance bonuses. Candidates are also encouraged to consider SWCA's Total Rewards package, which includes a competitive benefits package (https://www.swca.com/careers/benefits-wellness/), forward-thinking workplace flexibility, outstanding corporate culture, award-winning career development, and more.

SWCA continues to invest deeply in career development programs, delivering our award-winning Career Landscape support resources to accelerate the growth of our staff. We recognize the valuable skills and experiences our internal team members bring to SWCA's continued success. Qualified internal candidates are encouraged to apply and will be seriously considered for this position. We believe in promoting from within, where possible, providing our existing employees with compelling opportunities to advance their careers.

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