Ocean Career: Pelagic Fisheries Scientist at CEFAS

ECO Posted On March 14, 2022

Please be aware that this role(s) will be contractually based either in Lowestoft or Weymouth. 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.

The Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science (CEFAS) is seeking a Senior Pelagic Fisheries Scientist to join an internationally respected and dynamic team leading on fisheries science and management advice. The team delivers leading science and advice to both national and international marine management organisations including Defra, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and Regional Fisheries Management Organisations. The post also provides the opportunity to be purposefully involved in the International Council for Exploration of the Seas (ICES), and a variety of research projects to assess sustainability and support advice on fisheries management.

This post offers a fantastic opportunity for an outstanding person to lead on novel pelagic stock assessments and research in so doing, gain an international reputation for their skills and innovation. Cefas passionately supports staff development and opportunities for additional professional training and the successful candidate will work in a team of prolific stock assessors and fisheries scientists.

We welcome flexible working and are open to a hybrid approach of working from home and in an office.

The post holder will work with pelagic finfish stocks, dynamics, and consider factors influencing stocks productivity to support scientific advice needs. Duties will include:

• Lead the development and delivery of novel, spatially explicit methodologies for pelagic fisheries assessments, as well as applications of data limited and complex analytical models.
• Lead the research that underpins spatially explicit methodologies for pelagic fish species, to assess the dynamics of exploited fish populations (all life history stages, including for example egg or larvae surveys, dynamic modelling), in support of fisheries management.
• Develop and implement methods, including models, to assess and forecast pelagic finfish stocks and address questions on recruitment and population dynamics as well as sustainable fisheries.
• Develop pelagic fisheries assessments in the context of offshore wind farm developments.
• Develop and interpret scientific analyses to provide international advisory support on the assessment of marine pelagic finfish stocks.
• Develop and apply statistical and mathematical models, write reports, present results to a range of national and international customers, and contribute to scientific publications of high impact.
• Deliver assessments at working groups and advise 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 where Cefas has project work.

The following are essential criteria required for this role and you must be able to demonstrate your skills and experience in the following areas:

• High proficiency and experience in programming, and experience in the application of statistical / mathematical methods for data analysis.
• A scientific background and knowledge in marine ecology and/or biology.
• Very good written and verbal communication skills; and ability to communicate appropriately and effectively with experts and non-experts alike.
• The ability to lead and collaborate effectively either as part of multi-disciplinary teams or unsupervised within a professional working environment.
• Leading on analysis and interpretation of fisheries data, statistical modelling, including data limited assessments.
• Manipulating and analysing a wide variety of complex data sources, including earth observation data.
• Research experience in quantitative marine ecology.
• Effectively presenting results and support advice on fisheries and marine ecosystem management.
• Previous track record of completion of reports and science publications writing.
• Previous collaboration with other scientific institutes.
• Experience of undertaking fieldwork at sea.

Academic qualification required for this vacancy is a postgraduate degree. However previous relevant work experience in a scientific background and knowledge in marine ecology and/or biology will be considered.

This job is broadly open to the following groups:

• UK nationals
• Nationals of Commonwealth countries who have the right to work in the UK
• Nationals of the Republic of Ireland
• Nationals from the EU, EEA or Switzerland with settled or pre-settled status or who apply for either status by the deadline of the European Union Settlement Scheme (EUSS)
• Relevant EU, EEA, Swiss or Turkish nationals working in the Civil Service
• Relevant EU, EEA, Swiss or Turkish nationals who have built up the right to work in the Civil Service
• Certain family members of the relevant EU, EEA, Swiss or Turkish nationals

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