REPOSTED - Biologist in Aquatic Ecology - Research Affiliate Program

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

To be considered for the Research Affiliate Program (RAP), you must meet the following criteria:
-Be recognized as a full-time student by the post-secondary institution where you are currently registered (proof will be required).
-Have the minimum age required to work in the province or territory where the job is located.

To be appointed to the position, you must have all the essential qualifications. Other qualifications may be taken into consideration upon selected the person appointed. Some of the qualifications (essential or otherwise) will be assessed using your job application. It is your responsibility to provide relevant examples demonstrating how you meet each requirement. Failure to do so may result in your application being rejected.

ONLY APPLICATIONS SUBMITTED ON-LINE USING THE 'APPLY ON-LINE' BUTTON ABOVE WILL BE CONSIDERED.

Duties

This project will fall under the Aquatic Contaminants Research Division’s mandate focused on identifying what areas of Canada are most impacted (e.g., aquatic ecosystems that have undergone a regime shift or critical transition), their status in terms of ecosystem recovery, what are the factors that influence their recovery (e.g., climate change, contaminant exposure, nutrient enrichment) and what trophic levels, species or organisms are most sensitive to this change.

The objective of this project will be to analyze changes in aquatic communities (their co-occurrence and co-responses) under the effect of combined stressors (climate change, contaminants / pesticides, and eutrophication) across a broad, spatial scale (Canada wide study). More specifically, some key goals will be to 1) examine changes in community composition and size structures in response to climatic gradients, and how these changes may destabilize aquatic ecosystems, 2) identify hotspots of change and how these may relate to a suite of environment thresholds, 3) determine whether there are breakpoints in community responses (notably, organism size structure) with respect to latitude and anthropogenic stressors, 4) test the unique versus combined effect of stressors, and 5) examine whether driver-response relationships differ among Canada’s ecoregions. This project will allow us to test the hypothesis that climate change impacts the size structure of aquatic organisms (suppressed growth in colder climates), which in turn leads to higher bio-concentration of contaminants relative to warmer climates.

The key task for this RAP position will be to perform statistical analysis of data using Open source statistical programs (e.g., R, python). This includes developing and testing theoretical mathematical models of regime shifts and critical transitions, as well as interpreting results and writing scientific articles for publication.

Work environment

The work will be carried out mainly at the Environment and Climate Change Canada office in downtown Montreal in the Departmental laboratories and offices, under the direction and supervision of a scientific research team.

Positions to be filled: 1

Information you must provide

Your résumé.

Contact information for 2 references.

A list of the courses you have taken as well as any courses that you are taking now, or that you will be taking this academic year

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

EDUCATION:
Be registered in a master's program in a recognized post-secondary institution with full-time student status in one of the following disciplines: biology, environmental science or any other relevant scientific discipline.

Degree equivalency

EXPERIENCE:

Experience in collecting water samples and aquatic organisms in the field.

Experience related to the design and execution of fieldwork in Ecology or Limnology.

Experience in compiling databases and working with broad or national-scale databases.

Experience in preparing datasets and analyzing data (e.g., R programming language).

Experience in writing manuscripts or scientific reports.

Experience in classical taxonomic and trait-based approaches to aquatic organisms and their communities.


With respect to the recruitment of students to the federal public service, please note that experience can be gained through education, work experience or volunteer activities.

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

Bilingual - Imperative
The position requires the ability to communicate in both English and French.

Information on language requirements

KNOWLEDGE:

Knowledge of the collection and handling of water samples and aquatic organisms.

Knowledge of aquatic communities.

Knowledge of advanced statistical methods (e.g., multivariate analyses or regime shift models).

ABILITIES:

Ability to analyze data as well as synthesize and interpret results.

Ability to communicate effectively orally and in writing.

Ability to work in a team and manage time.

Ability to be independent.

Ability to be rigorous.

Demonstrate good judgment.

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

OPERATIONAL REQUIREMENTS:

The candidate must have the ability to collect samples in the field during irregular hours.

The candidate must hold a valid driver's license.

Conditions of employment

Reliability Status security clearance - Note: Each student hired under the Research Affiliate Program (RAP) must meet the security requirements of the position as a condition of employment. Therefore, the hiring organization will ask the student to fill out security documents.

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

A reference check may be done.

An interview may be done.

An exam may be administered.

Everyone has the right to participate in an appointment process in the official language or languages of their choice.

Random or top-down selection may be used to determine who will advance to the next step in the assessment process.

Applicants from outside the public service may be responsible for travel or relocation costs related to the selection process.

Successfully completing your RAP student term and your program of study may lead to an appointment to a temporary or permanent position in the federal public service, for which you meet the merit criteria and the conditions of employment.

For this selection process, it is our intention to communicate with applicants via email regarding screening and evaluation. This includes communicating the results of the screening and invitations to write one of the written tests and invitation for interviews. To this end, applicants must include a valid email address in their application. It is the responsibility of applicants to ensure that this address is functional and that it accepts messages from unknown users (some email systems block this type of message). They must also ensure that the information provided is accurate and up to date.

The Public Service of Canada is committed to building a skilled workforce that reflects the diversity of the Canadian population. Therefore, it promotes employment equity and encourages you to voluntarily indicate on your application if you are a woman, an Aboriginal person, a person with a disability or a member of a visible minority.

The Public Service of Canada is also committed to an inclusive and barrier-free selection process and work environment. If you are contacted about an employment opportunity or for exams, please notify the representative of the Public Service Commission or the organization in a timely manner of your needs for which accommodation must be taken to allow you a fair and equitable assessment. Information received regarding accommodation will be treated confidentially.

Preference

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