Field and Laboratory Research Assistant – NIOZ COS (Full-time Position)

The Department of Coastal Systems (COS) of NIOZ is looking for a Research Assistant to join its permanent staff. The position will support ongoing field and laboratory work associated with long-term ecological programs in the Wadden Sea and elsewhere.

THE INSTITUTE

NWO-NIOZ Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research is the national oceanographic research institute. The mission of NIOZ is to perform academically excellent multidisciplinary fundamental and frontier-applied marine research addressing important scientific and societal questions pertinent to the functioning of oceans and seas. Second, NIOZ serves as national marine research facilitator (NMF) for The Netherlands scientific community. In this role, NIOZ stimulates and supports national and international marine research, marine education programs and marine policy development.

THE DEPARTMENT

The Department of COS integrates state-of-the art laboratory, field and numerical modelling studies in frontier explorations of the drivers of the dynamics of marine habitats and food webs. COS examines how physical, chemical and biological processes interact to determine the distribution, composition and productivity of marine species, from primary producers to top predators, and marine habitats, from the coast to inter/sub-tidal and pelagic environments. Research is applied at the local, regional and global scales.

THE VACANCY

The main goal of this Research Assistant is to facilitate work conducted within COS. Under the leadership and supervision of the COS department head, the responsibilities will include:

• Performing research to support projects of Principle Investigators, post-docs and PhD researchers at COS including data processing.

• Conducting work at NIOZ laboratories or climate rooms on various topics (depending on your background and training). Examples of potential work topics include:

o   Fish (species identification, abundance, diet, dissection, growth analyses),

o   Benthos (identification and abundance of invertebrates, sediment grain size analysis)

o   Plankton (measuring phytoplankton primary production, identifying zooplankton).

• Organizing and conducting field work in the Wadden Sea or North Sea. Examples of potential field work include:

o   Intertidal and/or subtidal benthic sampling (one to several weeks per year).

o   Maintenance of seasonal field measurement stations (one to several weeks per year)

o   Oceanographic research cruises to the North Sea (one to two weeks per year).

o   Sampling fish captured in the NIOZ Fyke (several hours, daily in spring and autumn).

• Collaborate with other assistants to develop and maintain field and laboratory equipment and overseeing the renewal of equipment and methods of analysis upon request.

• Set priorities, come up with solutions and take actions as needed to perform field and laboratory work.

• Supervising the daily activities of students doing internships within the department.

THE CANDIDATE

• You have a HBO / MSc degree in marine science or a related discipline.

• You have previous experience of working in shallow coastal environments on marine plankton, benthic invertebrates and/or fish. Ideally, you have broad interests.

• You have previous experience in organizing and conducting field work in the Wadden Sea. Ideally, you have the relevant boat licenses (e.g. Klein Vaarbewijs 1 en 2) and safety permits.

• You have an affinity for working with live animals and basic knowledge of animal health and welfare.

• You have an interest in (and basic knowledge of) the taxonomy of marine invertebrates and/or fish in the Wadden and North Seas.

• You have demonstrated skills and experience in using laboratory and field equipment related to COS research lines including technical problem solving.

• You are proactive, flexible, work well within internationally and culturally diverse teams.

• You communicate well in Dutch and English.

We want to be a transparent institute with a healthy working climate and an inclusive culture, where people from diverse backgrounds and gender bring their talents and further develop these talents. We aim for inclusive decision-making processes and expect our leadership to show visible commitment, awareness of bias, and cultural intelligence.

THE CONDITIONS

• Employment of this full-time position at Royal NIOZ is by NWO-I. We offer a position for a period of 1 year, leading to a permanent contract subject to satisfactory performance.

• Salary compliant with CAO-WVOI  (Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Research Institutes) in scale 8, level in scale is depending on educational level and/or relevant experience.

• The freedom to fulfill your role and space and opportunities for your personal (talent) development with the help of the NIOZ Academy.

• 338 annualized holiday hours for a full-time 40-hour work week.

• Pension scheme via ABP, 8% holiday allowance and a year-end bonus of 8.33%.

• 2nd class public transportation travel is reimbursed 100%.

• Employment benefits plan to exchange a portion of your salary for days off or vice versa, or can be used to purchase a bicycle with tax benefits.

• We offer relocation expenses for employees coming from abroad and support with finding accommodation.

Please note that non-EU citizens can only apply for this position when they have a valid work permit for working in the Netherlands as it is not regarded as a scientific position.

MORE INFORMATION

The deadline for this vacancy will be the 1st of February. Interviews are planned for the second week of February. The position is planned to start in spring 2026. For more information about this vacancy, please contact Myron Peck (department head COS). For additional information about the procedure, please send an e-mail to working@nioz.nl.