Jobs Archive
Research Assistant
Role description:
The Natural History Museum is internationally recognized for its dual role as a centre of excellence in taxonomy, systematics, biodiversity and mineralogy and as a leading exponent in the presentation of the natural world to the general public through exhibitions. Its objectives are firstly, to discover and make available to the scientific community the information contained within its collections of natural specimens and secondly, to entertain, interest and educate people of all ages in natural history.
The successful applicant will join a large science group that comprises a group of approximately 300 scientists, that houses some of the largest and most significant scientific collections in the world, that is home to an internationally important natural history library, that includes a suite of advanced analytical and imaging facilities, and that has the opportunity to communicate science to a huge national and international audience.
The Department of Earth Sciences is one of two scientific departments within The Natural History Museum. Housing the museums collections of fossils, rocks, meteorites, soils, etc, the Earth Sciences Department employs staff who specialise in curation, conservation, and scientific research. We host a vibrant community of young scientists, including post doctoral researchers and PhD students. We also benefit from the experience and contribution of Scientific Associates.
We are currently looking for a candidate with a Science related degree to assist with our research of fossil and extant fishes, using X-CT scanning equipment such as the Nikon Metrology HMX ST 225 in our Image and Analysis Centre. You will visualize and analyse the data gathered with a number of software packages such as Avizo, Drisgti and VG Studio Max whilst maintaining the project website (http://chondrichthyes.myspecies.info/) and project data archive.
Salary: £24,018 per annum plus benefits
Contract: Fixed term up to 30 September 2016
Hours: 41 hours per week (including lunch breaks)
Closing date: 9am on Tuesday 13 October 2015
Role competences:
BEFORE beginning your application - Please read the section below about the ‘Online Application Process’ carefully.
If you wish to be considered for this role you will need to address each of the following competences in the ‘other information’ section of your online application:
1. An undergraduate Science degree or equivalent
2. Working knowledge of X-CT scanning
3. Proven experience in a range of packages (eg: Avizo, Drishti and VG Studio MAX) to visualize and analyze data
4. Previous experience in maintaining project websites and data archives
5. Knowledge of fish biology is desirable
Online application process:
You are required to provide a response to ALL of the role competences listed above within the ‘Other Information’ section of the online application form (up to 140 words per competence). In order to demonstrate how you meet each competence fully, please provide specific examples from your achievements, knowledge, skills and/or experience.
Head of Research
Amgueddfa Cymru-National Museum Wales has a strong track record of research across a wide range of disciplines and subject areas, including history, archaeology, art history, earth sciences, life sciences, conservation, collections management.
The Museum also has a growing research expertise at a national level in learning, interpretation, public engagement and museology – an expertise that will also be vital for delivering impact for future funding and partnerships. The Museum is recognised by Research Councils UK as an Independent Research Organisation.
This new post is required in order to drive forward a coordinated and ambitious programme of well-funded and impactful research across Amgueddfa Cymru and ensure its success.
The Head of Research will work with senior staff in departments across the Museum and with external funders and research partners to set research priorities defined by the Museum’s Vision, ensuring that the Museum significantly increases its external funding,
with the aim of making research projects self-sufficient, and develops excellent research that delivers the required outcomes for the Museum and the public.
The Museum has recently established a Research Advisory Committee of external experts and Trustees, to support the Head of Research in developing the Museum’s programme of research and to advise on strategy.
It has also created two new internal groups with representatives from different departments – one to develop strategic partnerships with universities in Wales and beyond and bids to UK Research Councils, the other to develop European bids. Research is fundamental to everything the Museum does. The Museum now needs to prioritise, enhance and develop its research, driven particularly by the need to develop the focus on impact and evidence outcomes, and develop high-value projects with funding from Research Councils, the European Union and other sources.
The Head of Research will ensure that all research supports the Museum’s priority projects and services. The Museum has an ambition to develop a Research Department with staff and resources for research projects, and a key role for the person appointed will be to take this objective forward.
Collections and Practicals Manager
This is an exciting opportunity to join one of the Schools in the Faculty of Science, providing discipline-specific support for academics and students in the School of Earth Sciences.
Whilst the role requires maintenance and organisation of the School’s collections, displays and map library, your role will be teaching support focused providing a high level of support to the academic and student community in the delivery of practicals. We envisage the breakdown of these activities will be 70% teaching lab support and 30% collection maintenance.
You must be able to plan and prioritise a busy and varied workload often working to tight deadlines. You will be an articulate and confident individual with excellent communication skills. A strong user care orientation and commitment to service quality is also required. Experience of working with academics or in higher education would be advantageous.
Responsibilities
To prepare laboratory classes by laying out and subsequently storing the minerals, rocks, thin-sections, fossils and maps as required by teaching staff and assist with the development of new teaching resources.
To maintain microscopes for use by staff and students; obtaining and storing spare parts ready for use.
To maintain and catalogue the Map Library and operate a system for the inspection and/or loan of maps to staff, students and outsiders.
To assist with the smooth running of the School’s in-house examinations.
To provide general AV maintenance support to School lecture rooms and teaching laboratories.
To maintain and organise the school's collections of rocks, minerals and fossils, to the standards laid down for a museum that is accredited under the national scheme operated by the Arts Council. It will also involve advising on the disposal and/or dispersal of research materials (books, papers, specimens etc.) left behind by departing staff and research workers, and to organise their dispersal to appropriate repositories.
To respond to enquiries and requests for loans from the school collections; to advise academic staff and research workers on the suitability of the material for teaching or research; to arrange and dispatch loans, or to host visiting researchers, as appropriate, when enquiries are made from outside the school. Book publishers and film companies frequently make requests to use specimens from the museum, or of images of them. Execution of these requests requires negotiation with regard to use of facilities, copyright and fees.
To maintain an on-line catalogue and website for the museum and teaching collections; to train and supervise volunteer labour to enter data; to monitor entries with reference to specialist literature in order to ensure consistency and correctness of the records. To control access to the collections by staff and students, according to policy agreed with the Head of School, and to monitor loans.
In association with the Photographer/Graphical Designer to produce material for the numerous display cases around the school, using materials from the collections and researching the background to provide informative exhibits which support the teaching programmes of the school, enhance learning experience for students, and provide a "shop-window" for the school's research and teaching for visitors and prospective students.
To control a small recurrent budget for museum and displays, supplemented by any income generated from right to use illustrations of (or to film) museum specimens; to control any income from museum grants.
Post-Doctoral Research Assistant – CoG3
This is a postdoctoral research assistant position funded by NERC as part of the multi-institute and multi-disciplinary research consortium “CoG3: The geology, geometallurgy and geomicrobiology of cobalt resources leading to new product streams”.
The position is based in the Earth Sciences Department of the Natural History Museum, London and the work will be carried out in conjunction with similar research at the National Oceanography Centre, University of Southampton.
The research is focused upon the investigation of new sources of cobalt, providing detailed mineralogical, chemical and atomistic-scale characterization of natural Co-bearing concentrations that represent potential new sources of the element. These are both new resources and the extension of previously exploited orebodies. This comprehensive characterization will underpin the proposed research of other work packages within the consortium that are examining novel techniques for Co extraction, enrichment and processing in order to provide tailored materials as required by the end users of this critical E-tech element.
Of the four, targeted geological environments to be investigated, two have an oxide-dominated mineralogy and two are sulfide/chalcogenide dominated. A combination of state-of-the-art synthesis, imaging, spectroscopy, geochemistry and mineralogy approaches will be applied to deliver two key objectives: ·
To improve understanding of the residence of cobalt in reduced, sulfide-rich hydrothermal systems, to better characterise the often complex ore types and assess the differences in deportment between cobalt and other transition metals such as Ni and Cu.
To study the behaviour of cobalt in the Critical Zone and in seafloor oxide deposits in order to develop a fundamental understanding of the mineral residence at the atomic scale within natural assemblages and synthetic analogues. Analysis of the samples will involve a range of analytical tools available at the Natural History Museum, including X-ray diffraction (XRD), electron microscopy (EPMA and ASEM), infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), thermal analysis (TGA) and Laser Ablation ICPMS. High resolution chemical and chemical-state imaging, and atomic-scale characterization will be performed using synchrotron X-ray spectroscopy and microscopy methods (µXRF, µXANES, µXAFS, STXM) performed at Diamond Light Source.
There is potential for the successful candidate to become involved in international fieldwork and the in situ collection of new samples. The successful candidate will join a research team of 5 PhD students and 6 post-doctoral researchers working within the CoG3 consortium. This consortium is a cross-discipline group of scientists, consisting of 8 academic institutes and supported by industrial partners from the mining and mineral processing sectors, and by the Cobalt Development Institute.Additionally, the successful candidate will be a member of the NERC Security of Supply of Mineral Resources cohort of about 30-40 students and early stage researchers with integrated training and outreach opportunities.
Role competences:
Completed or about to submit a PhD thesis in a relevant area of geoscience
Expertise in mineral and/or chemical analysis of natural/synthetic materials
Experience in microbeam characteristation techniques
Proven track record of publications in international journals
Excellent verbal and written communication skills with the ability to influence and negotiate at all levels
Good analytical skills with strong attention to detail and the ability to undertake methodical tasks to a high level of accuracy
Effective use of information technology for data anaylsis and research activities, communication and presentations
Ability to work in a research team
Willing to fulfil departmental, consortium and outreach duties when required Online application process:
Main tasks
To improve understanding of the residence of cobalt in reduced, sulfide-rich hydrothermal systems and in oxidised cobalt ores in the critical zone of the earth's crust and seafloor oxide deposits.
To better characterise the often complex ore types and assess the differences in deportment between cobalt and other transition metals such as Ni and Cu.
Develop a fundamental understanding of the mineral residence at the atomic scale within natural assemblages and synthetic analogues using synchrotron methods when required.
Collaborate in a research team within the cohort of 6-post docs and 5 PhD research students
Participate in consortium-wide technical meetings and workshops to disseminate research outputs
Undertake public outreach and schools activities to publicise research activities
Publish results of research activities in international journals
Museum Director
For most of the past 50 years the Sierra College Natural History Museum has been run as an all-volunteer organization. The Museum is now hiring a Director to aid in the development of an endowment fund to establish long-term funding for permanent staffing and towards a new facility. This Director will also be responsible for expanding connections with the community via public outreach. Institutional Information:
The Sierra College Natural History Museum was established in the early 1960s. Initially the Museum received funding from the state for its Community Services Program, which provided tours and lectures, put on community events and provided teacher training. In the 1970s this funding was cut with the passage of Proposition 13 and all staff were let go and the programs were eliminated. A group of volunteers worked to bring back some of those programs.
In 2009 the Museum decided to make a move towards accreditation. We have since completed 3 Museum Assessments through the American Alliance of Museums and are implementing their recommendations.
The primary recommendation of all of those Assessments has been that the Museum needs to hire a Director. An internal hire was brought on in this position to help the Museum to establish policy for a three-year term. The Museum is now ready to move into the next phase with a new Director with a greater focus on Development.
The Museum is a unit of Sierra College community college in Rocklin, California, Placer County and is home to over 12,000 specimens including vertebrate fossils, partial and whole animal mounts and an herbarium. The Museum also manages an on campus nature preserve. Information about the Museum can be found online.
Qualifications:
Applicants must have at least a Bachelors of Science in an appropriate field.
Candidates for this position should have successful fundraising experience with either a museum or non-profit organization, have written successful grant applications and have experience with performing community outreach.
Job Specifications:
Conduct fundraising for the Sierra College Natural History Museum. These activities may include:identifying potential donors, soliciting for donations, hosting of donor events, maintenance of the Membership program for the Museum, identification and solicitation of sponsors for Museum events and/or displays, and any additional campaigns or items designed to build the endowment for the Museum.
IIdentify and apply for grants (one-time or sustainable) that can be used to build the endowment for the Museum, or that can be used to support current activities, allowing the Museum to redirect funds otherwise spent on these activities towards the endowment.
Represent the Museum in the community by giving presentations about the Museum to community groups and conducting radio, TV or other media interviews designed to promote the Museum.
Act as a liaison between the Sierra College Natural History Museum Committee, the Sierra College Natural History Museum Guild and the Sierra College Foundation.
Conduct at least three Community Events per year (including Dinosaur Day: Science Fest) in consultation with the Museum Committee.
Conduct at least one major donor event per year, in consultation with the Museum Committee and the Sierra College Foundation.
Report to the Sierra College Natural History Museum Steering Committee and the Sierra College Natural History Museum Committee the status of ongoing activities related to the items listed above.
Branch Head, Natural Sciences
About the Australian Museum
The Australian Museum operates within the NSW Department of Justice. The Museum provides access, engagement and scientific research to increase our understanding of natural history and culture, particularly of the Australasian region. The Australian Museum is the first museum in Australia; founded in 1827 its mission is to inspire exploration, understanding and care for our world. The Australian Museum is at an exciting time in its evolution with transformational development works underway and significant plans for the future expansion of the Museum.
About the role
This is a strategic leadership role that is responsible for leading and managing the Branch that represents, cares for and develops the Museum’s natural science collections, undertaking research on those collections and ensuring effective implementation of the Museum’s Science Strategy. The position reports to the Director Australian Museum Research Institute, Science and Learning.
Essential Requirements
As the successful candidate, you will demonstrate:
Tertiary qualifications in a relevant field of the natural sciences at the level of PhD or Masters.
Demonstrated knowledge and experience in order to deliver the Key Accountabilities and perform to the Focus Capabilities outlined in the Role Description.
Key Accountabilities
Provides leadership in the natural sciences, through commitment to the Museum's vision and goals and translation of the Museum's agenda into operational plans and ensuring that own behaviour aligns with the Australian Museum’s Code of Conduct, policies and procedures
Implements plans and strategies that influence internal staff, external stakeholders and organisations and effectively communicate objectives to staff and stakeholders.
Demonstrates an excellent knowledge of standards, legislation, policies and procedures relevant to the role and uses judgement and complex analysis of organisational issues to reach a solution.
Communicates work requirements, delegates responsibility, seeks ideas and feedback from staff to encourage a team-based environment and monitors and directs multiple teams performing different functions. Directs others in their research and provides authoritative advice.
Communicates with other teams and areas to coordinate activities and programs and to ensure accuracy, relevance and appropriateness of information the Museum provides to the public.
Deliver influential presentations, facilitate audience dialogue, synthesise views and provoke further discussion in the field of natural sciences and as relevant to the Australian Museum Science Strategy.
Prepare and manage the annual operating budget and monitor expenditure and cash flow for the Branch.
Identify grant and other external funding opportunities relevant to the work of the branch.
Core Laboratory Technician (Petroleum Geosciences)
One of the leading oil & gas research institutes of Abu Dhabi is actively seeking to fill a position of Laboratory Technician, where the successful candidate will work in the Petroleum Geosciences Department’s laboratories within the institute's research centre.
Remuneration:
An attractive remuneration on EXPAT terms will be negotiated with the successful candidates and will be in line with the very best the industry has to offer to attract the best talent.
Key Responsibilities:
Responsible for coordinating and undertaking all activities pertaining to geological core and rock sample handling, preparation and lay out.
Participates in the operation and general maintenance of relevant core store and laboratory equipment and management of the core store inventory.
Understands and keeps current with all aspects of laboratory health, safety and sample preparation techniques.
Qualification Required:
B.Sc. degree in Geosciences or related discipline is required.
Candidates with a proven educational background in the Earth Sciences will be given preference.
Experience Required:
Candidates must be able to demonstrate experience in working in an active geological core store environment.
Experience of core curation would be advantageous.
Experience in the operation of conventional core preparation and analysis equipment is preferable.
Curatorial Assistant (Angus Moth Project)
Leisure & Culture Dundee is a Scottish Charitable Incorporated Organisation (SCIO) SC042421. It was established by Dundee City Council in July 2011 to deliver leisure, sports, library, information and cultural services for the city.
www.leisureandculturedundee.com
Based at The McManus Collections Unit you will work 37 hours per week for an 18 month period (from the start of the contract) working on a Museums Galleries Scotland Funded Project you will work with The Robertson collection at The McManus, The Gunning Collection in Montrose and the Tod collection at the University of Dundee.
- Requirements
You will have a Biology or Environmental science related degree or equivalent.
- Responsibilities
As Curatorial assistant for the Angus Moth project you will be required to work with the three partners in the project, you will undertake the recording and care and digitisation of moth collections from The Robertson collection at The McManus, The Gunning Collection in Montrose and the Tod collection at the University of Dundee.
Each of the three museums has independently developed moth collections from the same geographical area (historic Forfarshire), but they cover slightly different time periods. Moths are an important source of historic environmental, distribution and taxonomic information
You will work with the three organisations to digitise the collection improving the care, management and accessibility.
We will contribute records to the new National Moth Atlas to be published in 2018. This provides us with a unique focus to improve the data, maximise engagement with the collections.
This data will subsequently be published online through the National Biodiversity Network Gateway website.
- The Individual
You will have experience of working or volunteering in biology or the environmental sector , along with a knowledge or experience of research on identification of moths.
You will have experience of working with a wide variety of stakeholders to deliver access and engagement opportunities and have a willingness to travel between the three venues.
You should be IT/computer literate, methodical and have a planned approach to work, alongside an aptitude in multi-tasking and ability to work to set timescales. Also required is a knowledge of professional standards and best practice.
You will have excellent interpersonal skills and have the ability to work effectively and constructively both unsupervised and as part of a team.
Identification Trainers for the Future - 5 Traineeship positions
The Identification Trainers for the Future project is creating 15 traineeships based at the Natural History Museum between 2015 - 2017. In this round of applications, 5 trainees will be selected for this 12-month placement, starting in March 2016. Please note, in order to apply you must be available to start from March 2016, we are not able to accept applications for the 2017 traineeships at this stage, nor can we delay start dates of the placements.
If your application is successful, as a trainee, your time will be divided between working with various teams in the Natural History Museum, including the Angela Marmont Centre for UK Biodiversity, curatorial teams and the Learning and Engagement department, and a programme of workshops which will build on your skills in species identification, taxonomy and scientific communication and instruction.
A tax-exempt bursary of £16,500 will be provided to all trainees to cover living expenses while they undertake their traineeship.
For a list of museum employee benefits please visit http://www.nhm.ac.uk/about-us/jobs-volunteering-internships/museum-benef....
For further information, including more information on the background to the project and details of the training which will be provided, please find the link details: http://www.nhm.ac.uk/content/dam/nhmwww/take-part/identification-trainer....
Department: Life Sciences – Angela Marmont Centre for UK Biodiversity
Contract Type: 12-month traineeship
Bursary award: £16,500 per annum (tax exempt) plus benefits
Application Close Date: Midnight on 12th October 2015
Selection day: Week commencing 10th December 2015
Role competences:
As part of the on-line application, you must provide answers to the following questions. These will be used to short list applicants who will be invited to the selection day.
1. Describe your areas of interest in UK wildlife.
2. Using relevant examples, describe your involvement in recording UK wildlife. This may be through local or national recording schemes, undertaken as part of a voluntary role you have been doing, a private research project, a project undertaken in school, college or university, or simply recording the wildlife that comes to your garden, local park or nature reserve.
3. Why do you think it is important to support and train people to record wildlife in the UK?
4. The traineeship programme focuses on developing your ability to teach and train others, as well as your species identification skills. Using your own experiences of courses or classes you have attended as examples (whether wildlife-related or not), what do you think are the key features of a good training session?
5. What qualities and strengths do you feel you will bring to this traineeship and to the Natural History Museum? How do you think undertaking this traineeship will benefit you and your future career?
Online application process:
How to Apply
Apply on-line before the 12th October 2015 through the NHM website: http://www.nhm.ac.uk/search-vacancies. For internal applications please apply through the Internal NHM website
* Complete the on-line application form. In the ‘Other Information’ section, please provide specific examples from your achievements, knowledge, skills or experience to illustrate your answers to each of the application questions (section 3) for the role. You must complete this section.
* Please use one field per application question, you can use a maximum of 140 words per field.
Please note:
* You must fully complete your on-line application, CV’s are not being accepted for this traineeship
* Partially completed applications with CVs attached will be rejected.
* Individual cover letters and CVs submitted outside of the on-line application system will not be considered.
Assistant Collections Information Manager Research and Collections
Canada, QC, Gatineau
ME-05
Permanent full-time position
$58,552 to $71,568 per year
Work location : Gatineau, Quebec (Aylmer sector)
DUTIES:
The position is responsible for:
- Managing the administration of the Collections Management System (CMS) at the procedural and technical levels;
- Assisting in the development, implementation, and oversight of policies and guidelines for best practices in the digitization of natural history collections;
- Providing informatics-related services and advice to Research and Collections staff, and to external partners;
- Disseminating CMN collections data to the research community via established web portals.
OPEN TO:
All individuals who meet the following qualifications*.
*Preference will be given to Canadian citizens and individuals who are legally entitled to work in Canada.
EDUCATION:
Graduation from a recognized university with a Bachelor of Sciences degree in biology, biodiversity informatics, or a closely related field, or equivalent training and experience.
LANGUAGE REQUIREMENTS:
English and French are essential.
Bilingual non-imperative (BBB/BBB).
(A non-imperative appointment means that the position can be staffed with a person who makes the commitment to become bilingual within a specified timeframe through language training at the CMN's expense).
EXPERIENCE :
- Experience in contemporary museum or natural history collections practices.
- Two years' of experience in biodiversity informatics and working with distributed databases.
- Two years' of experience in managing information about scientific collections.
- Experience in project management.
SEND YOUR APPLICATION BY E-MAIL TO:
Michael Booth, Human Resources
Email : mbooth@mus-nature.ca
State competition NO. CMN-2090-15-OC-022. Statement of qualifications is available by contacting the above e-mail address.
NOTE
All candidates must submit a cover letter outlining how their experience and training meet the basic requirements listed above.
Please note that only candidates who are selected for the next stage of the selection process will be contacted. As a result of this competition, we may establish an eligibility list of potential candidates that may serve to staff similar positions.
The Canadian Museum of Nature is committed to developing inclusive, barrier-free selection processes and work environments. If contacted in relation to a job opportunity or testing, please advise the Human Resources Advisor in a timely fashion of the accommodation measures which must be taken to enable you to be assessed in a fair and equitable manner. Information received relating to accommodation measures will be addressed confidentially.
The Museum supports employment equity.
CLOSING DATE: September 14, 2015 at 4:00 p.m.