Research Assistant - Plant Biology

Work environment

As one of Canada’s Best Diversity Employers, AAFC is proud to celebrate our achievement in creating a diverse, respectful, and positive workplace where all employees are valued and recognized for their unique qualities, ideas, voices and perspectives.

Intent of the process

The immediate need is to staff 1 position for a specific period of up to 4.5 years.

This position is part of a sunset funded program. Therefore, the period of employment will not count in the calculation of the three (3) year cumulative working period for indeterminate employment pursuant to the Treasury Board Secretariat Term Employment Policy.

A pool of qualified candidates may be established and may be used for similar permanent and temporary employment for the location indicated for this process.

Positions to be filled: 1

Information you must provide

Your résumé.

Contact information for 2 references.

You must meet all essential qualifications in order to be appointed to the position. Other qualifications may be a deciding factor in choosing the person to be appointed. Some essential and other qualifications will be assessed through your application. It is your responsibility to provide appropriate examples that illustrate how you meet each qualification. Failing to do so could result in your application being rejected.

In order to be considered, your application must clearly explain how you meet the following (essential qualifications)

A secondary school diploma or an acceptable combination of education, training and/or experience in a discipline relevant to plant science

Degree equivalency

Experience in documentation of digital data related to biological collections
Experience with computerized databases
Experience in generating information on biological objects and capturing it in electronic form

If you possess any of the following, your application must also clearly explain how you meet it (other qualifications)

Bachelor degree from a recognized post-secondary institution with acceptable specialization in plant science, biology, agriculture or computer sciences

Degree equivalency

The following will be applied / assessed at a later date (essential for the job)

English essential

Information on language requirements

Knowledge in documentation needs of ex situ collections (genebanks) for plant genetic resources for food and agriculture
Knowledge in genetic diversity of cultivated plants

Planning and organizing
Adaptability
Creativity and innovation
Interactive communication
Teamwork

Abilities in organizing and communicating information using computerized systems

The following may be applied / assessed at a later date (may be needed for the job)

Knowledge of plant germplasm conservation methods
Knowledge of plant breeding

Selection may be limited to members of the following Employment Equity groups: Aboriginal persons, persons with disabilities, visible minorities, women

Information on employment equity

Placement of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) employees affected by workforce adjustment.

Conditions of employment

Reliability Status security clearance

Ability and willingness to work flexible hours

Known allergies must be controlled through the use of personal protective equipment and/or medication and must not impinge upon the duties to be performed.

With appropriate safety precautions in place:
Ability and willingness to work with computers, scanners and other electronic devices in laboratory, greenhouse and field facility environments for extended periods at a time;

Ability and willingness to work with various crop species, crop wild relatives or native Canadian plant species.

Other information

Applications submitted by email will not be accepted. You must apply on-line through www.jobs.gc.ca.

Persons with disabilities preventing them from applying on-line are asked to contact 1-800-645-5605.

Persons are entitled to participate in the appointment process in the official language of their choice. Applicants are asked to indicate their preferred official language in their application.

Communication for this process will be sent via email. It is the responsibility of the candidate to ensure accurate contact information is provided and updated as required. Candidates who apply to this selection process should include an email address that accepts email from unknown users (some email systems block these types of email).

All communication relating to this process, including email correspondence, may be used in the assessment of qualifications.

Appointment decisions may be based on one or more of the following criteria:
- Matching of the individual's experience or qualifications to the strengths and weaknesses of the work team.
- Matching of the individual's experience or qualifications to the specific duties of the position being staffed.
- Depth, breadth, type of work-specific experience.
- Level/degree of one or more competencies/qualifications.

The Public Service of Canada is committed to building a skilled, diverse workforce reflective of Canadian society. As a result, it promotes employment equity and encourages candidates to indicate voluntarily on their application if they are a woman, an Aboriginal person, a person with a disability or a member of a visible minority group.

The Public Service of Canada is also committed to developing inclusive, barrier-free selection processes and work environments. If contacted in relation to a job opportunity or testing, you should advise the Public Service Commission or the departmental official 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.

Preference

Preference will be given to veterans and to Canadian citizens, in that order.

Information on the preference to veterans

We thank all those who apply. Only those selected for further consideration will be contacted.