The Department of Ecoscience is looking for research assistants in hydrology and transport of nutrients in streams

One or more 3-year full-time positions as research assistants in the areas of hydrology and transport of nutrients in streams are available at the Department of Ecoscience at Aarhus University starting on May 1st, 2024 or as soon as possible thereafter.

Your profile 

We are looking for one to two research assistants with the following profiles:

Partly an employee to organize fieldwork and laboratory analyses as well as support in coordinating and managing of a 3-year research project with the participation of several Danish and foreign research institutions. Tasks related to coordination include contact with the Danish Environmental Protection Agency's employees who handle sampling and field measurements, as well as the Institute's own laboratory technicians and field employees.

Partly an employee for data analyses, primarily within environmental monitoring and consultancy regarding hydrology and transport of nutrients in streams. The tasks consist of data processing, data analysis and the use of mathematical models. It also includes quality assurance of monitoring data as well as development and adjustment of existing monitoring methods.

The new employee(s) are expected to contribute to the dissemination of data, for example through monitoring and advisory reports.

We are looking for people for the positions as research assistants who are trained as biologists, engineers, environmental engineers, geologist or similar. With knowledge of methods for data collection and data analysis used in hydrological and biogeochemical research (cand. scient or equivalent).

We are looking for employees with experience in one or more of the areas below:

• Experience with laboratory analyses and carrying out hydrological and water chemical field measurements.
• Experience using drones in the field will be a strength.
• Good data analytical skills and experience with building or using databases. You must have experience or interest in programming in SAS, Python or R as well as analysis and statistical processing of complex data sets.
• Experience with GIS analyses and/or knowledge of hydrological modelling will be an advantage.
• Experience with data processing and publishing research data will be an advantage.

We want committed employees who are good at creating an overview and who at the same time have an eye for detail. Great emphasis is placed on good collaboration skills, a desire for teamwork and the ability to organize one's own work and that of others.

About us

The Department of Ecoscience at Aarhus University is a leader in research-based advisory service within the management and restoration of nature and the environment in aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. The Section for Catchment Analysis and Environmental Management mainly works with research and advice in hydrology, nutrient loss and substance flows in catchments to Danish watercourses. Methods include modelling of hydrology and nutrients, monitoring of substance transport and agriculture's impact on nutrient leaching from fields, development of new tools to reduce nutrient loss, restoration of wetlands and organic lowland soils.

The section is responsible for the annual, nationwide calculation of nitrogen and phosphorus transport to the coastal waters, as well as the development and revision of professional and technical guidelines for sampling and analysis of nutrients in water. Agricultural cultivation Data is collected annually, and nutrient concentration and loss are measured just below the root zone, in drainage water and in streams in six small agriculturally dominated catchments.

The section has a broad and diverse research profile, both with participation in national, Nordic and EU-funded research projects, and is building a new model group within catchment hydrology and substance cycles, and houses a strong research group within the restoration of wetlands and wet laying of e.g. low-lying soils.

There is a total of approximately. 300 employees at the Department, of which a good 100 work in Roskilde, the rest are spread over AU Campus Aarhus.

On the institute's website (https://ecos.au.dk/) you can find more information about the Department of Ecoscience and the research projects we work with.

We offer interesting and challenging positions with a focus on applied environmental research and advisory. It will be possible to follow relevant courses. The workplace is characterized by collaboration and by working in teams.

Place of work 

The workplace is C.F. Møllers Allé, 8000 Aarhus C, where the Department of Ecoscience has laboratories and offices in buildings 1120, 1130 and 1131.

Contact information

Further information can be obtained from Professor Brian Kronvang, email: bkrecos.au.dk, or senior adviser Hans Thodsen, email: hathecos.au.dk.

Deadline 

All applications must be received no later than March 4th, 2024.

Application procedure

Short-listing is used. This means that after the deadline for applications – and with the assistance from the assessment committee chairman, and the assessment committee if necessary, – the head of department selects the candidates to be evaluated. The selection is made on the basis of an assessment of who of the candidates are most relevant considering the requirements of the advertisement. All applicants will be notified within 6 weeks whether or not their applications have been sent to an expert assessment committee for evaluation. The selected applicants will be informed about the composition of the committee and will receive his/her assessment. Once the recruitment process is completed a final letter of rejection is sent to the deselected applicants.

Letter of reference

If you want a referee to upload a letter of reference on your behalf, please state the referee’s contact information when you submit your application. We strongly recommend that you make an agreement with the person in question before you enter the referee’s contact information, and that you ensure that the referee has enough time to write the letter of reference before the application deadline.

Unfortunately, it is not possible to ensure that letters of reference received after the application deadline will be taken into consideration.

Formalities and salary range

Natural Sciences refers to the Ministerial Order on the Appointment of Academic Staff at Danish Universities under the Danish Ministry of Science, Technology and Innovation.

The application must be in English and include a curriculum vitae, degree certificate, a complete list of publications, a statement of future research plans and information about research activities, teaching portfolio and verified information on previous teaching experience (if any). Guidelines for applicants can be found here.

Appointment shall be in accordance with the collective labour agreement between the Danish Ministry of Taxation and the Danish Confederation of Professional Associations. Further information on qualification requirements and job content may be found in the Memorandum on Job Structure for Academic Staff at Danish Universities.

Salary depends on seniority as agreed between the Danish Ministry of Taxation and the Confederation of Professional Associations.

Aarhus University’s ambition is to be an attractive and inspiring workplace for all and to foster a culture in which each individual has opportunities to thrive, achieve and develop. We view equality and diversity as assets, and we welcome all applicants.

The application must be submitted via Aarhus University’s recruitment system, which can be accessed under the job advertisement on Aarhus University's website.

Aarhus University

Aarhus University is an academically diverse and research-intensive university with a strong commitment to high-quality research and education and the development of society nationally and globally. The university offers an inspiring research and teaching environment to its 38,000 students (FTEs) and 8,300 employees, and has an annual revenues of EUR 935 million. Learn more at www.international.au.dk/