Job Introduction
We’re looking for an exceptional Foundation Scientist - Surge and Wave Monitoring and Prediction to help us make a difference to our planet.
As our Foundation Scientist, the job may be suitable for hybrid working, which is where an employee works part of the week in the office and part of the week from home. This is a voluntary, non-contractual arrangement and the location advertised will be your contractual place of work.
Our opportunity is full time, 37 hours per week, but we would also consider applicants wishing to work a minimum of 30 hours per week. Our people are at the heart of what we do and we'll do our best to agree a working pattern that works for everyone.
World changing work
From science to technology, from meteorology to management, and from planning to communication, our expertise helps us stand out as the authority on weather accuracy and climate prediction. We help individuals, industries and government to make better decisions to stay safe and thrive. This is the Met Office. This is who we are.
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We’re a force for good - focusing on our environmental and social impact
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We’re experts by nature - always learning and developing to do things better
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We live and breathe it - putting our purpose at the heart of decision-making
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We’re better together - understanding partnerships and inclusivity make us greater
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We keep evolving - pushing boundaries to make tomorrow better for our customers
Your world of expertise
The Ocean Forecasting Research and Development (OFRD) team develop, deliver, and monitor operational marine forecast model and analysis systems relied on by Met Office forecasters, UK government agencies, industrial and academic users. The Surge and Wave Monitoring and Prediction team are responsible for our global-regional wave and UK storm surge model science and configurations, providing scientific and technical expertise to a range of internal and external stakeholders. The team works with WAVEWATCH III and NEMO codes, contributing to international community model development and software standards. As Met Office systems keep evolving, the team will play a significant role in both the future of our coupled Numerical Weather Prediction (NWP) systems. This role presents an opportunity to join the surge and wave team, helping to develop and deliver science that helps people Stay Safe and Thrive in the UK and beyond.
As a member of our team, you will deliver user-focused science and software developments for an operational forecasting environment, and assist the monitoring and verification of our modelling systems.
Your key duties
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Develop, run and test updates to surge and wave forecasting systems.
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Monitor the quality of our surge and wave forecasts.
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Work closely with Met Office and academic researchers developing the upstream science changes that improve our forecasting systems.
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Maintain and support the running of software and workflows that are used to run, monitor and verify our surge and wave forecasts.
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Communicate developments and their impact to a range of audiences through written reports and papers as well as oral presentations at internal and external meetings.
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Keep up to date with developments in relevant marine science.
Why join us
Our work is life-changing, often life-saving and always life-enhancing. The Met Office is accredited as a 'Great Place to Work UK 2023' and in addition has achieved a place on both the UK's 'Best Workplaces in Tech' and 'Best Workplaces for Women' lists.
As our your total reward package will be up to £37,776 annually, which includes:
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£26,954 base pay
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An outstanding Civil Service pension, with an average employer contribution of 27%
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Annual Leave starting at 27.5 days (plus Bank Holidays) rising to 32.5 days (plus Bank Holidays) after 5 years and option to buy or sell up to 5 days per year of annual leave
Essential Criteria, skills and experience:
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An Expert by Nature with a good degree in a relevant scientific subject.
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You Live and Breathe It, showing a strong interest in the physical marine environment.
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A good understanding of numerical modelling and scientific validation of model results.
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Strong scientific computing skills (e.g. experience with Matlab, Python, Fortran, C++) and a willingness to Keep Evolving technical expertise alongside your science experience.
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Evidence of good communication skills (written, oral, presentation and listening) with ability to communicate scientific and technical information to a range of audiences.
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An ability to help us be Better Together through being a team player with an ability to support and interact with technical specialists.
How to apply
If you share our values, we’d love to hear from you. Apply below with your CV and provide evidence against each of the essential criteria in the supporting statement questionnaire. We recommend candidates use the CARL method (Context, Action, Result and Learning) for presenting evidence of experience and skills.
Closing date 26/08/2024 at 23:59 with first stage interviews commencing from 09/09/2024. You will hear from us once the closing date has passed.
How we can help
If you are considering applying and need support to do so, please contact us via careers@metoffice.gov.uk. You can request adjustments either within your application or by contacting us. Should you be offered an interview, please be aware there may be a selection exercise which could include a presentation, written test or a scenario-based activity. You can select in your application to be considered under the Disability Confident Scheme. To be invited to interview/assessment under this scheme, your application must meet the essential criteria for the role.
We understand that great minds don’t always think alike and as an equal opportunities employer we welcome applications from those with all protected characteristics. We recruit on merit, fairness, and open competition in line with the Civil Service Code.
We can only accept applications from those eligible to live and work in the UK - please refer to GOV.UK for information. We require Security clearance, for which you need to have resided in the UK for at least 3 of the last 5 years to be eligible. You will need to achieve full security clearance within your first 6 months with us.
We are currently working through a re-prioritisation process in our Science Directorate, with some employees being asked to discontinue their current work. These employees will be given priority for internal campaigns until the re-prioritisation is complete.
