Continue an established research portfolio in movement modelling methodology and applied statistics problems at the interface between statistics and marine ecology, motivated by quantitative problems encountered in collaborative projects.

Actively engage in external citizenship, demonstrating leadership and motivation.

Lead and support BioSS tendering in specific external income generation opportunities in marine ecological statistics, related to offshore renewables.

Main Responsibilities Of The Post

• Responsible for BioSS deliverables in project consortia, including producing and delivering presentations, writing project reports, producing manuscripts for external peer review, and representing BioSS at internal and external meetings and conferences.
• Supervising other staff in project consortia, setting the direction of research and ensuring that deliverables are met.
• Work with other senior BioSS staff in tendering, including bids for external funding from the Scottish Government Marine Directorate and other government bodies, UKRI, and industry projects relating to the impacts of offshore renewable energy developments on seabirds and marine mammals, and on delivering the project(s) where successful.
• Collaborate with scientists at all levels across interdisciplinary consortia, delivering research specialising in movement and spatial marine ecological statistics.
• Proactively build new and existing collaborations, both within project consortia, across the academic sector, and across the sector with government, Statutory Nature Conservation Bodies, and industry stakeholders.

Grade, starting salary, duration, and location

This post will be offered at Hutton Level 6 (senior statistician, salary £44,434.00 part time pro-rata). This is a fixed term appointment for 12 months at 28 hours per week, equivalent to 4 days per week.

Candidates must be available to start on 01/09/2026 and be available for the duration of the contract.

Location for this post is flexible; the post-holder can be based at BioSS offices in Edinburgh, Aberdeen, or Dundee. We offer a flexible working approach where a degree of working from home is encouraged. However, entirely remote working is not possible for this role.

Knowledge, Skills And Experience

Criteria

• A PhD in statistics or another discipline having a substantial quantitative element.
• A high level of expertise in statistical development of movement modelling and applying movement models to ecological data.
• A strong track record of research and/or collaboration evidenced by scientific journal and conference papers in ecological movement modelling.
• An ability to communicate well with ecological scientists, understand their analytical challenges and to translate them into statistical methodology and research.
• Evidence of substantial project management experience and the ability to manage multiple project deliverables.
• Evidence of ability to initiate, manage and maintain scientific collaborations.
• Strong general statistical skills, including an understanding of relevant areas such as: mixed models, generalised linear models, generalised additive models, Bayesian statistics, sampling design.
• Excellent statistical programming ability in R.
• Ability to give effective spoken presentations, to both quantitative and wider scientific and applied audiences.
• Experience of interdisciplinary working with multiple disciplines and roles (e.g. decision makers, industry representatives).
• A track record of line managing staff or supervising students.

Desirable

• Evidence of science-policy interactions or a wider understanding of how evidence is used in decision making.
• Experience of developing and leading funding applications.
• Track record of developing R packages.

How To Apply For This Post

Only candidates who have the right to work in the UK are eligible to apply for this role.

Potential applicants are encouraged to contact Dr Esther Jones (esther.jones@bioss.ac.uk) to discuss this position. Further information on the above post, including how to apply, is available on the BioSS website at http://www.bioss.ac.uk/vacancies

The application process involves creating an account and uploading personal details along with:

• a CV, including as a minimum your education and employment history plus relevant scientific achievements;
• a short explanation of why you consider yourself suitable for this post, including a description of your current and planned research activities.

The closing date for applications is 13th July 2026. Interviews will be held either online or in-person in the week beginning 27th July 2026.

Please note that we do not use any automated technology to sift candidate applications and encourage applicants to submit a full and considered application.

What We Offer

• Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) - A confidential service available to support employees and their families with work or personal problems. Providing access to professional counsellors, psychologists, and work-life consultants available to help and support individuals in tackling all types of problems.
• Annual Leave – Generous entitlement up to 40.5 days a year, with carry over possible and guaranteed time-off for Christmas.
• Pension - Employer Contribution of 15% in a Personal Pension Plan and employee contribution flexibility.
• Self-managed hours and Flexible Working – option to manage and spread your working time in line with organisational needs to create a healthy work life balance.

Privacy Policy

The James Hutton Institute Privacy Statement

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What information do we collect from you?

We Collect Information That Is Specifically Provided By You As Part Of An Application Process. We Will Collect The Following (but Not Limited To):

• Name, address, email, telephone number
• CV (if applicable)
• Equal opportunities monitoring information (defined as special categories data) - this information is purely for statistical analysis and monitoring