His research focuses on using hydro-acoustic instruments to improve quantitative description of open channel flow. In addition, his teaching responsibilities require innovative approaches for presenting engineering material to provide the best possible learning environment and assessment for his students. Prior to his position in academia, Scott worked for CDM Smith, a full service engineering firm in Chicago, Illinois on a variety of water resources projects including flood plain management, sewer system design, inland lake wave modeling, and open channel field data-collection and modeling.