The School for Marine Science & Technology (SMAST) at the University of Massachusetts – Dartmouth, in collaboration with the NOAA Fisheries Northeast Fisheries Science Center (NEFSC), is seeking one postdoctoral associate to lead a project in “Using fine-scale fishery dependent data to evaluate potential impacts to fishery operations due to offshore wind energy development”. All applicants should have strong analytical skills with a background or interest in fisheries science. Descriptions of project and project team can be found below. The position has an annual salary of $55-60K with benefits and funding for travel to scientific meetings. The successful candidate could begin as soon as possible. The position will be administered through an annual contract with SMAST, and funds are available to renew the contract conditional on performance. Candidates who are non-US citizens must have current authorization to work in the United States. UMass Dartmouth cannot pay or provide support for visa applications for these positions.
Required Qualifications:
- A completed (or nearly-completed) PhD degree in a relevant discipline, such as fisheries science, marine science, statistics, oceanography, ecology, quantitative ecology, or other related field that demonstrates a strong quantitative background.
- Demonstrated experience of fluency in statistical/modeling programming languages (e.g. R, Matlab, Python).
- Strong written and oral communication skills, as evidenced preferably through publications in the peer-reviewed scientific literature and reporting and presentations to a variety of audiences.
Preferred Qualifications include research experience in:
- statistical analysis and data management in marine or fisheries applications,
- spatial analysis of ecological data,
- advanced statistical modeling,
- economic and social science,
- communications with resource managers and stakeholders in fisheries and other marine industries.
Project Description:
The University of Massachusetts School for Marine Science and Technology, in collaboration with the NEFSC Cooperative Research Branch is using Study Fleet and Observer data to evaluate potential impacts on commercial fishery operations due to offshore wind energy development. Using the longfin squid fishery as a case study, the team is estimating fishery footprints and potential fishery displacement. The team is specifically exploring how the resolution of fishing effort data (haul-level vs. trip-level) impacts understanding of fishing operations, fishery footprints, and potential displacement. This topic is emerging as an important aspect of managing the coexistence of offshore fisheries and wind energy development and is expected to be a productive long-term research agenda with promising career opportunities. The position will primarily be located at the Northeast Fisheries Science Center laboratory in Narragansett, RI with some expectations to travel to regional and national scientific meetings. The associate will work closely with NEFSC researchers and have a faculty mentor at SMAST who is collaborating on the project. They are also expected to engage with students and staff at SMAST, with flexibility for some work at that location (New Bedford, MA).
Position contacts:
Questions about this position can be directed by email to Dr. Steve Cadrin (scadrin@umassd.edu) or Dr. Anna Mercer (anna.mercer@noaa.gov).
Interested applicants that meet the requirements should review the SMAST Code of Conduct and Diversity Statement, then submit an application consisting of cover letter, CV, and contact information for at least two professional references to the following job posting:
http://careers.umassd.edu/dartmouth/en-us/job/508086/noaanefsc-postdoctoral-fellow-grantfunded
Initial review of applications will begin 1 May 2021. Applications should be submitted by this date to receive full consideration. Questions about the positions can be directed via email to the project leads as listed below.
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