Postdoctoral Research Associate

Location: John Krebs Field Station, Department of Biology, Wytham, Oxford, OX2 8QJ

We are looking for a postdoctoral researcher to join a team studying the chemical ecology of pollination by bumblebees, specifically of tomatoes in horticultural settings.

The ideal candidate would have:

• experience working in a laboratory and/or semi-field environment with bees, including maintaining and rearing of bumblebee colonies
• research experience in chemical ecology, specifically the analysis of floral volatiles and / or pollen
• competence in software development, particularly AI-assisted audio & video analysis
• experience working with industrial partners.

The successful candidate will:

• collaborate with the team to design and conduct experiments, collect samples, and analyse data.
• organize the field work in conjunction with our industrial partner.
• be responsible for day-to-day supervision of a technician supporting the experiments in Oxford and at the partner’s site in Kent.
• work with (and develop) high-throughput image capture and analysis software to track bee behaviour; develop apparati for behavioural experiments.

Additionally, they may be asked to supervise Masters-level students engaged in projects relevant to the work and so will be involved in training new students in data collection techniques.

The University of Oxford is committed to equality and valuing diversity. All applicants will be judged on merit, according to the selection criteria.

This post is full time (100%) and available from the 1st January 2025 - 31st December 2026 with an possible but unconfirmed 6 month extension.

The salary is Grade 7.1S -  £37,524 (inclusive of an Oxford University Weighting)

The closing date for applications is 12.00 noon on 14th October 2024, and interviews are likely to be scheduled for the last week of October 2024. Applications for this vacancy are to be made online via our e-recruitment system, and you will be required to upload a supporting statement and CV as part of your online application.

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