The post provides an opportunity to join an internationally respected, dynamic, and active team conducting and leading on fisheries science, assessments and management advice to national and international marine management organisations including Defra, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office, and the International Council for Exploration of the Seas (ICES), and a variety of research projects to assess sustainability and support scientific advice on fisheries management.
Key work areas are to lead and deliver research and method development aimed at advancing mixed fisheries management advice, working to develop and apply mixed-fishery models that take account of technical interactions to assess the impact of annual and multi-annual management measures on fish stocks, fisheries and overall management objectives. The primary focus will be mixed fisheries including application of existing techniques and development of new ones (e.g. to improve our understanding of the impact of technical measures in a mixed-fishery context).
This is an exciting opportunity to lead on projects that impact how fisheries are managed in future, working with policy colleagues to improve sustainability of mixed fisheries. Cefas actively supports staff development and opportunities for additional professional training and development are available.
JOB DESCRIPTION
- You will have responsibility to conduct high-quality research on fleets and fisheries impacts on fish stocks given mixed-fishery interactions, primarily through application of mixed-fishery models to provide scientific input on the assessment of fishing impacts in marine ecosystems.
- You will lead the development and interpretation of scientific analyses that will be applied to advisory support on the assessment of marine fish stocks and the marine environment and research the impact of technical interactions on achieving management outcomes, including developing mixed fishery models, spatial analysis and consolidate links with colleagues specialising on multispecies models.
- You will be required to deliver on projects as Principal Investigator and lead on the application of fish stock assessment models, development of mixed fishery statistical and mathematical models, ad-hoc ecological modelling, reporting and peer-review publications, and presentation of results to a wide range of national and international audience.
- You will be expected to deliver in international assessment working groups (including ICES WGMIXFISH) and support advice on fisheries and marine ecosystem management to Cefas, Defra and other national and international bodies within multi-disciplinary international teams based in the UK or in overseas locations sometimes with a tight turnaround.
- You will be expected to represent Cefas at national and cross agency meetings, work with other Principal Investigators to keep Cefas’ senior advisors up to date on advances in this area including, but not limited to, development and delivery of evidence and policy priorities.
LOCATION
We welcome flexible working and are open to a hybrid approach of working from home and in an office. The location for this role(s) is also flexible, though some travel to Cefas sites maybe required. Please be aware that this role(s) will be contractually based at one of the Cefas sites (Lowestoft, Weymouth, Scarborough, Hayle and Plymouth). The successful candidate is required to carry out all their duties from a UK location, and cannot do so from an overseas location at any time unless travelling for business purposes.
RESPONSIBILITIES
The following are essential criteria required for this role and you must be able to demonstrate your skills and experience in the following areas:
- Excellent scientific background and experience in marine ecology, fisheries and/or ecological modelling with a post-graduate degree or equivalent relevant work experience.
- Ability to scope, produce and negotiate tenders with customers and research teams.
- Very good ability in statistical analysis and programming using R and/or other languages (TMB and C++ a help).
- Experience in tools for quantitative fisheries science would be useful (e.g. FLR).
- High proficiency on the use of data analysis, statistical and graphical methods to provide scientific advice.
- Track record of publishing in peer-reviewed, international scientific journals.
- Ability to lead on projects and project teams, collaborate with existing and build new relationships with national and international organisations and customers.
- Demonstrable ability to foster existing strategic and scientific partnerships and develop new relationships with key organisations/individuals.
- Good organisational skills and effective prioritisation of workloads, including planning and prioritising effectively to deliver high quality results at pace.
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with attention to detail, ability to influence and work across multiple projects.
- Experience in marine ecology and/or fisheries science, or related subject.
- Demonstrable experience in the delivery of high-quality science to address fisheries.
TECHNICAL SKILLS
We'll assess you against these technical skills during the selection process:
- Leading science development and delivery in high profile project delivery environment.
- Writing high-quality publications and scientific advice.
- Very good record of use of computational methods to address fisheries, macroecology, or environmental questions.
BENEFITS
- Annual leave entitlement – 25 days on entry (rising to 30 days over first 5yrs)
- Access to learning and development tailored to your role
- A working environment that supports a range of flexible working options
- A working culture which encourages inclusion and diversity
- Eligible to join the Civil Service Pension scheme. Very favourable package, contributions are more than matched by employer – more information can be found on the CSP website
- Performance Related Pay scheme – yearly award linked to individual performance
- Staff Recognition vouchers
- In-year recognition scheme (monetary amounts up to max £2000 possible)
Salary: £35,895 - £41,660
Contract Type: Permanent
Application Deadline: Monday, January 10, 2022
