Research Associate – Statistical Ecologist (IRC231209)

Salary: £28,200

Location: Maclean Building, Wallingford, OX10 8BB

Contract Type: Fixed Term – 3 years

Closing Date: 25th September 2016

About the role:

The NERC Research Associates’ Programme is an initiative which is intended to offer individuals the opportunity to gain practical experience of working within a Research Institute, whilst acquiring specialist and wider skills that will be valuable in a range of careers.

The programme is aimed particularly at those who have recently completed postgraduate studies, but is open to individuals from other backgrounds and of all ages. Individuals will work on highly topical research projects, both important for future research within the environmental research community and appropriate to their backgrounds. Research Associates are given specific, measurable objectives which will be intended to develop their skills as a researcher and to demonstrate their suitability for a research career.

Description of specific work to be undertaken and skills to be gained:

We are looking for a Research Associate to join our exciting programme to train and to work on flood and rainfall frequency estimation. You will undergo an extensive training programme and undertake project work to develop generalised statistical flood frequency estimates, using innovative approaches to incorporate non-stationarity and uncertainty estimation. The main focus will be on the development of new techniques to model the spatial and temporal variability of extreme floods and to translate these new developments into practical procedures that can be used by hydrologists and planners.

You will develop skills in hydrology, modelling of statistical extremes and current Flood Estimation Handbook (FEH) methods and practice. In addition you will gain new skills in the development of hydrological models and methods for the practical assessment of flood risk in the UK and overseas.

Job Requirements:

Skills and qualifications required on appointment
• you will have at least a 2.1 degree in a numerate science subject, preferably in Mathematics and/or Statistics, and either a PhD or a Masters with relevant postgraduate experience that includes a strong element of formal statistics (for example, joint probability problems multivariate statistics, time series and trend studies, covariate modelling and spatial statistics)
• some experience in extreme value statistics would be advantageous
• you should have a keen interest in researching, developing and implementing statistical models of natural environment
• you will be able to demonstrate excellent team working skills providing examples of how you work independently and as part of a team
• you must be able to demonstrate through examples how you would communicate effectively with different audiences, including colleagues, senior managers, external scientists and the public (non-experts)
• you should have established programming skills (Fortran, C/C++, Python, R).

How to Apply

Online applications only, please submit a covering letter and CV to http://www.topcareer.jobs/Vacancy/irc231209_6710.aspx, ensuring that the IRC reference is included in the file name description of each document uploaded. No Agencies.

The closing date for applications is 25 September 2016. The interview/assessment date for this vacancy is 24 October 2016.

We want to make our application process as easy for you as we possibly can. If you experience any problems in applying for this job, or have any feedback for us about the application process, please contact our Recruitment Hotline on 01793 867000 (8.30am – 5.00pm Monday to Friday). Please quote the appropriate IRC reference number when calling….