Project Archaeologist

About the opportunity

SWCA Environmental Consultants seeks a Project Archaeologist for our Salt Lake City, Utah office. The Project Archaeologist is a core member of the Cultural Resources Program, responsible for quality assurance/ quality control review, proposals, research, report writing, and managing agency and tribal relationships.

This is a regular (with benefits), hourly position. The role could be part-time or full-time, depending upon candidate preference. The role can be either hybrid within the Salt Lake City, UT area or distributed (remote). Annual pay will be based on individual qualifications and experience.

Application Deadline : Applications will be accepted through 10.15.2026 at 5:00 PM MDT.

What you will accomplish

• Leads or assists assigned projects with initiative, taking responsibility for the technical approach, project management, and ensuring quality assurance and control. Develops and manages deliverables for more complex projects, managing tasks under the direction of a senior project manager.
• Innovates and adapts methods to meet future client needs, staying ahead in their professional discipline.
• Encourages team collaboration, fostering an environment where team members work together to achieve project goals and share information effectively.
• Makes project management or task decisions, urgently when necessary, using sound judgment to consider trade-offs and ensure project success (within project parameters).
• Develops and manages technical approaches and directs and conducts quality assurance and control tasks.
• Completes technical reviews of deliverables, ensuring they meet project requirements and professional standards.
• Communicates effectively with clients and agencies, being responsive to their requirements and developing strong professional relationships.
• Completes project tasks promptly, ensuring client satisfaction and resolution of any issues, while contributing to team unity and effective collaboration.
• Follows applicable federal, Tribal, state, local, industry, contractual, and company regulations, standards, and specifications.
• Performs related work as assigned.

Additional Job-Specific Responsibilities

• Work with agency representatives for successful project implementation.
• Assist with technical, high-quality proposals, research plans, Section 106-related reports, and literature reviews, with oversight from subject matter experts and project managers.
• Nurture and develop agency relationships.
• Oversee report deliverables, adhering to SWCA’s Quality Assurance/ Quality Control (QA/QC) program.
• Write scientific and technically sound reports and research related to cultural resources

Experience and qualifications for success

• A Master’s degree in Archaeology, Anthropology, or a closely related field.
• Four (4) years of experience in cultural resources management (CRM) on a variety of project types, sizes, regions, and agencies, with increasing levels of responsibility.
• Demonstrates strong technical and regulatory knowledge of Utah and Nevada
• Can lead projects/tasks from start to finish, with guidance (PM for medium projects or Task Lead for large projects)
• Permittable as a Principal Investigator in Utah and Nevada; ideal candidate will be permittable in several states
• Performs technical subject matter expert review of cultural resources deliverables
• Available for occasional project visits and PI reviews in the field, but mostly an office-based position

Preferred Qualifications:

• Seven (7) years of experience in cultural resources management on a variety of project types, sizes, regions, and agencies, with increasing levels of responsibility.
• Meet the Secretary of Interior’s standards for archaeology.