Physical Scientist, Research (Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology)

Important messages

We are committed to providing an inclusive and barrier-free work environment, starting with the hiring process. If you need to be accommodated during any phase of the evaluation process, please use the Contact information below to request specialized accommodation. All information received in relation to accommodation will be kept confidential.

Assessment accommodation

Please specify in your application for which stream(s) you are applying:

Stream 1: Environmental Chemistry (2 positions)
The environmental chemistry stream will consist primarily of research laboratory work using state-of-the-art chemical instruments in support of several departmental priorities such as the development of new regulations, and the Chemicals Management Plan. The position will also support risk assessment activities by developing new analytical techniques for initiatives aimed at protecting aquatic ecosystems such as the St. Lawrence Action. Moreover, the position will establish links with ecotoxicology work, both internal and external to the Department.

Stream 2: Ecotoxicology (Anticipatory)
The ecotoxicology stream will consist mainly in research laboratory and field work using a variety of biological tests in support of several departmental priorities such as the development of new regulations and the Chemicals Management Plan. The position will also support risk assessment activities by developing new analytical techniques for initiatives aimed at protecting aquatic ecosystems such as the St. Lawrence Action Plan. Moreover, the position will establish links with environmental chemistry work, both internal and external to the Department.

Intent of the process

The intent of this selection process is to fill two (2) indeterminate positions under stream 1 - Environmental Chemistry, one located in Burlington, Ontario, and one located in Montreal, Quebec. A pool of fully qualified candidates will be established and could be used to staff similar or identical positions with various tenures and various linguistic requirements in Environment and Climate Change Canada in Burlington, Ontario or Montreal, Quebec.

Positions to be filled: 2

Information you must provide

Your résumé.

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

Streams 1 and 2:
►Graduation with a degree from a recognized post-secondary institution, with acceptable specialization in physics, geology, chemistry or some other science relevant to the position.

Note: The courses for the specialization must be acceptable and must have been taken at a recognized post-secondary institution, but not necessarily within a degree program in the required specialization.

Degree equivalency

Streams 1 and 2:
►Experience in contributing to experimental design as related to aquatic contaminants research.
►Experience in writing technical or scientific documents or reports.

Stream 1:
►Recent* and significant** experience in operation, maintenance and troubleshooting advanced analytical instrumentation including liquid or gas chromatography interfaced mass spectrometers
►Recent* and significant** experience in developing methods in environmental research including treatment, preparation and instrumental analyses from various environmental matrices such as water, wastewater, biological tissues, sediment, etc.

Stream 2:
►Recent* and significant** experience in conducting laboratory or field research projects related to the biological effects of anthropogenic and natural stressors in aquatic ecosystems.
►Recent* and significant** experience in data interpretation as related to ecotoxicological research projects.

* Recent experience implies having acquired the experience in the last five (5) years.
** Significant experience implies having performed those duties for at least two (2) years.

Streams 1 and 2:
►Knowledge of laboratory health and safety practices and procedures.
►Knowledge in managing the operations of a laboratory and in the field.

Stream 1:
►Knowledge of quantitative methods to analyze environmental samples.
►Knowledge of quality assessment and control methods.

Stream 2:
►Knowledge of the principles of ecotoxicology in aquatic ecosystems.
►Knowledge of analytical methods to evaluate the biological effects of contaminants in aquatic organisms.

Streams 1 and 2:
►Ability to plan, organize, and prioritize workload.
► Ability to communicate effectively orally and in writing.
►Ability to adapt work under pressure with changing priorities.
►Ability to analyze and interpret scientific information.

Streams 1 and 2:
►Showing Initiative and being action oriented
►Working effectively with others
►Demonstrating Integrity and Respect
►Thinking things through.

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

Streams 1 and 2:
►Graduation with a Master’s degree (or higher) from a recognized post-secondary institution in the field of physics, geology, chemistry, biology or some other science relevant to the position.

Degree equivalency

Streams 1 and 2:
►Experience in authoring scientific publications as first author.
►Experience in developing training materials and/or delivering presentations.
►Experience in supervising and training interns and students.

Stream 1:
►Experience in operation, maintenance and troubleshooting state of the art instrumentation including ultra-high resolution mass spectrometry instruments (eg., QToF, orbitrap).
►Experience with analytical instrumentation software operating systems such as Mass Hunter, Excalibur, MassLynx and data analysis software such as Compound Discoverer, Mass Profiler, to generate quantitative and qualitative results.
►Experience in structural elucidation using mass spectrometry data.
►Experience in chromatographic separation.

Stream 2:
►Experience in the use of laboratory analytical methods at the gene (e.g., PCR, gene sequencing) and/or biochemical and/or tissue levels to assess the effects of contaminants in aquatic organisms.
►Experience in the development of new analytical methods or protocols to assess effects of contaminants in aquatic organisms.

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

Various language requirements
Streams 1 and 2: Various linguistic profiles
(English Essential in Burlington; Bilingual Imperative (BBB/BBB) in Montreal)

Information on language requirements

Second Language Writing Skills Self-Assessment
In order to help you decide if you should apply to a bilingual position, an optional self-assessment of your writing skills in your second official language is available for you to take before completing your application.

For more information, please consult:
Unsupervised Internet Test of Second Language Writing Skills

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

Environment and Climate Change Canada is committed to establishing and maintaining a representative workforce and diversity. This organizational need may be identified as part of the appointment decision. In such cases, qualified candidates who self-declare as members of a visible minority group, Indigenous peoples, persons with disabilities or women may be considered in priority.

Conditions of employment

►Reliability clearance
►Possession of a valid driver’s license.
►Being able to travel within Canada occasionally.
►Being able to work in laboratory and/or field environments for extended periods of time.
►With safety precautions in place, being able to work with hazardous materials.
►All employees of the core public administration are required to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and attest to their vaccination status unless accommodated based on a medical contraindication, religion, or another prohibited ground for discrimination as defined under the Canadian Human Rights Act.

Other information

The Public Service of Canada is committed to building a skilled and diverse workforce that reflects the Canadians we serve. We promote employment equity and encourage you to indicate if you belong to one of the designated groups when you apply.

Information on employment equity

*** ONLY ONLINE APPLICATIONS WILL BE ACCEPTED ***

HOW TO APPLY:

Applicants are not required to submit a cover letter. Instead, they are required to answer questions and provide information through the electronic application.

As such, when submitting your application to this selection process, you will be required to answer screening questions to demonstrate how you meet the Essential Qualifications (Education and all Essential Experiences) as well as any Asset Qualifications (if applicable).

When answering the screening questions, it is not sufficient to say that you have the required qualifications or to list your current or past responsibilities. Rather, you must provide concrete examples of tasks you have accomplished with significant details to explain the WHAT, WHEN, WHERE and HOW you acquired each qualification.

Candidates must also submit a resume with their application. The resume will be used to validate the information provided in the applicant’s answers to the screening questions. It could also be used by the hiring managers for their articulation of their decision.

Should your responses to the screening questions contain insufficient details to demonstrate that you meet the screening criteria, your application will not be given further consideration in this process. Candidates will not be solicited for incomplete or possible missing information.

IMPORTANT: Cover letters are NOT required and WILL NOT be considered

Asset qualifications may be used in the screening process. Therefore candidates must clearly demonstrate in their application which of the asset criteria for education and experience they possess.

Depending on the number of applicants, the needs and/or Human Resources plans, volume management strategies such as random selection, top-down approach and/or establishing cut-off scores to determine who will continue in the staffing process, may be used for the purpose of managing applications.

Several methods of assessment may be used to assess potential candidates (written exam, interview, reference check, etc.). Please note that any information provided through this selection process may be considered in the assessment of any of the essential or other qualifications, including the ability to communicate effectively in writing.

Acknowledgment of receipt of applications will not be sent.

Persons are entitled to participate in the selection process in the official language of their choice.

Candidate(s) will be required to provide proof of their education credentials, in the form of a diploma or official transcript (original documents only). Candidates with foreign credentials must provide proof of Canadian equivalency. Consult the Canadian Information Centre for International Credentials for further information at http://www.cicic.ca/.

Our intention is to communicate with the candidates by email. Candidates who apply to this selection process must include in their application a valid email address and make sure that this address is functional at all times and accepts messages from unknown users (some email systems block these types of email).

On October 6, 2021, the Government of Canada announced details of its plans to require vaccination across the federal public service.

As per the new Policy on COVID-19 Vaccination for the Core Public Administration Including the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, federal public servants in the Core Public Administration and members of the RCMP must attest to their vaccination status. The requirement for employees to be fully vaccinated applies whether they are teleworking, working remotely or working on-site. This is a condition of employment and it applies to indeterminate (permanent), determinate (term), casual, and student hiring. Should you reach the point in the selection process where it is necessary to verify terms and conditions of employment then the hiring manager or a human resources representative will contact you in order to complete an attestation.

Preference

Preference will be given to veterans first and then to Canadian citizens and permanent residents, with the exception of a job located in Nunavut, where Nunavut Inuit will be appointed first.

Information on the preference to veterans

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