Radiation Safety Officer at Mercor

Radiation Safety Officer (RSO) | $65–75/hr | Worldwide Remote

Mercor is assembling a panel of radiological safety experts to evaluate and red-team frontier AI models. This task-based contractor role is ideal for licensed RSOs who can reliably distinguish routine professional inquiries from potentially dangerous ones — and articulate that judgment in writing.

What You'll Do

• Write challenging single-turn prompts across three risk levels: benign, dual-use, and adversarial
• Evaluate AI-generated responses against a defined policy standard and judge whether each was handled appropriately
• Write reference answers — including the correct response and the technical reasoning behind it

Why This Role Matters

Radiological safety sits squarely on the dual-use line. The same isotope that powers cancer therapy enables industrial radiography; the same shielding calculation that protects a worker can conceal a source. A model that refuses a routine dose question fails just as badly as one that answers something it shouldn't. Drawing that line reliably requires practitioners, not generalists.

Ideal Background

• Named RSO on a broad-scope licence — programme management, source inventory, and regulatory compliance
• RSO or deputy RSO at a university, hospital, or research institute with mixed radionuclide and sealed-source programmes
• Industrial or irradiator RSO with experience in Category 1 and 2 sealed sources, radiography, gauging, or sterilisation
• Licensing and compliance specialist with NRC, Agreement State, or national regulator experience
• Radiation protection manager accountable for ALARA, audits, training, and incident reporting

Additional Requirements

This is writing-intensive work. Every judgment must be supported by a clear written rationale accessible to non-specialists. Prior technical writing, published research, or expert witness experience is a strong signal — please include a sample or link in your application.

You will be reading and writing about misuse scenarios for sustained periods. Mercor briefs all experts on this in advance, and you may pause or step away at any time without penalty.

Important Note

This work must not draw on classified, export-controlled, or NDA-protected information. If you hold such obligations, you may still be a strong fit — simply note it in your application and the scope will be adjusted accordingly.