The mission of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science and William & Mary’s Batten School of Coastal and Marine Sciences is to seek and broadly communicate knowledge in marine and coastal science to the Commonwealth of Virginia, the nation, and the world through research, education, and advisory service.
VIMS’ strategic sections are committed to the development of resilient systems through a focus on three grand challenges, ensuring science for stewardship of:
1. Ecosystem Health: connecting physical, chemical, biological, and socioeconomic systems to address environmental and community vulnerabilities
2. Natural Resources: providing translational science for sustainable management of coastal socio-ecological systems, especially fisheries and aquaculture
3. Coastal and Ocean Processes: connecting global trends and local drivers to understand and address environmental change.
Position Summary
The Laboratory & Research Specialist II is part of the SAV program in the Seagrass Restoration and Field Monitoring component, which includes execution and management of grant and state-funded research projects under the direction of senior staff.
Core Responsibilities include but are not limited to:
* Participates with field work in various parts of the Chesapeake Bay and Virginia Eastern Shore, including collections of flowering shoots, distribution of seeds, seedling establishment surveys, faunal surveys, biological data, and maintenance of hydrographic data loggers.
* Assists with processing seagrass and invertebrate samples, seed storage and processing, and laboratory experiments as needed.
* Assists as needed with collection of seagrass epifauna samples, seagrass samples, biomass and core samples, trawl and seine samples, water samples, and seed samples.
* Enters, curates, and manages data for various projects with appropriate QA/QC.
Conditions of Employment:
* This is a full-time, non-exempt position eligible to receive overtime in accordance with the Fair Labor Standards Act, and University policy.
* This position may be subject to over-time during high peak times as preapproved by supervisor.
* This position requires the ability to perform in the field and on the water in various weather conditions.
Required Qualifications:
EDUCATION:
* BS/BA in biology or marine science or related field or the equivalent combination of education and experience.
COMPETENCIES:
* Knowledge of aquatic ecosystems research.
* Knowledge of lab and field sample collection and processing techniques and ability to adhere to detailed safety and experimental protocols.
* Ability to perform comfortably in the field and on the water in all weather conditions.
* Experience working on and around small vessels.
* Familiarity with snorkeling with the ability to snorkel comfortably in a wet suit.
* Proficiency in a variety of software applications to include MS Office Suite, with strong data management skills.
* Effective interpersonal and oral and written communication skills with the ability to work independently as well as collaboratively as part of a team.
* Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple tasks and projects concurrently.
EXPERIENCE:
* Experience working in aquatic science program performing scientific sample processing.
* Experience conducting laboratory and field research.
* Experience participating in field work on the water.
* Experience with data analysis and producing figures.
Preferred Qualifications:
EDUCATION:
* A master’s degree in biology, preferably in Aquatic or Marine Science or a closely related field.
* Boating Safety Course or similar certification.
* SCUBA certified.
COMPETENCIES:
* Demonstrated skills in microscopy with the ability to process and record data.
* Knowledge of invertebrate taxonomy with the ability to use dichotomous keys.
* Atlantic coast seagrass species identification.
* Extensive knowledge of Chesapeake Bay and Virginia Eastern Shore ecosystem ecology including flora and fauna is highly preferred.
* Knowledge of maintaining and monitoring seawater systems (e.g. water tables, tanks, aeration).
* Demonstrated skills in sonde (YSI, exo, etc.) calibration, deployment, and maintenance.
* Familiarity with operating small vessels including trailering and launching.
* Faunal sampling including bag seines, and small trawls.
* Estuarine fish identification in the field.
* Coding and data analysis in R using R Studio and modern data management libraries (e.g. tidyverse, dplyr).
EXPERIENCE:
* Experience working on the water in estuarine and marine waters of Virginia.
* Experience conducting SAV surveys for identification and coverage estimation.
Is the position remote work eligible? Not eligible
Advertised Pay Range: up to $45,000
All hiring rates are commensurate with relevant experience up to the advertised amount considering internal alignment.
Benefits Summary Statement: William & Mary offers our employees a full array of benefits including retirement, health insurance with options for expanded dental and vision along with group and optional life insurance with coverage
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