SCIENTIFIC ASSISTANT
Fixed Term (12
months) – 40 hours per week
We are Chester Zoo,
and for over 80 years we’ve been a leading conservation and education charity, and an
amazing, award-winning visitor attraction.
We’re also a team of
passionate, talented, enthusiastic and expert people, doing everything we can to keep the zoo
going, from feeding the animals to discovering new conservation ideas, and
giving our 1.9 million
visitors an inspirational day out.
We work hard because
we love animals, we care about nature, we love Chester Zoo and we want to be the best zoo in
the world!
If you think you can
help us to achieve that, then we’d love to hear from you.
We currently have an
exciting vacancy for a Scientific Assistant to support the Chester Zoo science team in their
delivery of applied conservation scientific activities which help to establish
us as a centre of excellence
for conservation breeding and animal welfare, and to ensure that our conservation and
educational scientific activities both in the zoo and globally achieve the
greatest conservation impact.
The Role
The Scientific
Assistant will provide research support in the core applied scientific
disciplines when necessary with basic
research skills such as data collection and analysis. Most support will be required within our
Visitor and Community Engagement specialism and will involve social science research methods,
such as social survey data collection.
They will deliver
general science lectures and talks to applied science stakeholders and also support the
effective dissemination of Chester Zoo’s scientific activities through targeted communications.
The Scientific
Assistant will support Chester Zoo’s scientific processes by supporting the zoo science processes
which aim to determine project feasibility, effective compliance with Chester Zoo’s Research and
Ethical policies and ensure projects contribute towards optimising behaviour and welfare of
animal collections and the conservation impact of Chester Zoo’s educational and conservation
activities.
The ideal candidate
will have:
· A Bachelor’s
degree in an applied conservation science field
· A strong
commitment to conservation and the educational role of zoos
· Demonstrated
ability to deliver projects on time and to a high standard
· The ability to
present information clearly and concisely in verbal presentations and written communications
· Proven ability to
work in and contribute to a team environment
· Evidence of
research skills in a relevant field
In addition, the
following would also be beneficial:
· Knowledge and
experience of zoo-based research and zoo operations
· Experience in
social science research methods
· The ability to do
general statistical analysis
Hours of work are 40
hours per week, worked Monday to Friday.
Salary is £19,730.34
per annum and in addition we offer a range of amazing benefits which can be found at
To apply for this
position, please provide your current CV and covering letter stating why you believe you should
be considered for our Scientific Assistant role to
Closing date for
applications is Thursday 19th January 2017.
Peter Dickinson
Independent International Zoo Consultant        |
