Research Assistant In Farm Data

Salary: £31,396 to £32,982 per annum

Newcastle University is a great place to work, with excellent benefits. We have a generous holiday package; plus the opportunity to buy more, great pension schemes and a number of health and wellbeing initiatives to support you.

Closing Date:  20 February 2024

The Role

The School of Natural & Environmental Sciences pioneers training and research which impacts society from the local area to all corners of the planet. Our School provides a distinctive breadth of subjects and specialisms and our ground-breaking research has led to new treatments for ovarian cancer, the discovery of the world's deepest-living fish, enzymes which promote deep cleaning and the development of pest-resistant crops.
 
We have an exciting opportunity to join a highly motivated and results orientated team at Newcastle University (NU) Farms managing a 5G Agritech Project.  NU Farms cover 800ha of Red Tractor assured mixed arable and grazing operations and a commercial dairy herd of 250 cows across three sites in Northumberland; Cockle Park, Nafferton Farm and Ouston.  You will be based across our farm sites and main campus in Newcastle and will have an interest in working in a fast-paced, varied, and challenging environment.

The UK’s agricultural sector and farming communities face multiple national/global pressures from net-zero transition, global food shortages and the UK’s food security requirements. The North East, as one of the largest, most important land-based and rural economies in the UK, and home to the UK’s leading rural innovation and research assets, will be a testbed for innovation companies to pilot technologies within a farm environment to accelerate the new developments to meet a national requirement to develop a sustainable, productive and greener agricultural sector.

The Agritech project will deliver a highly censored platform which takes in real time data that will allow commercial companies to measure the impact of their products on an ongoing basis. The data platform will be managed and maintained by Newcastle University and ongoing costs will be built into future budget projections.  The project will allow other tech companies to link their systems up, such as disease prediction models, remote crop health monitoring and methane monitoring to start to bring real productivity gains to UK agriculture. In addition, this facility will allow us to bring in equipment manufacturers, breeding companies, farmers and management advisers to promote the work and support the commercialisation of solutions. 
 
The appointment is a fixed term contract until March 2025 and is available on a full-time basis (37 hours per week).
  
To apply, please complete an online application form and upload your CV and cover letter. Your cover letter is a supporting statement, and you should outline how you meet the essential criteria of the role and evidence this with examples. 
 
If you would like to discuss this vacancy, please contact James Standen, NU Farms Director via email: james.standen@ncl.ac.uk.

For more information about the School of Natural and Environmental Sciences click here.

Key Accountabilities

Project Management
•    Coordinate with technical, research and farms teams to develop SOPs and ensure data is collected and stored appropriately
•    Provide day-to-day high-level support working alongside academics and the PI
•    Routinely monitor all data collection activities, reviewing risks, issues and progress, taking actions as necessary to ensure deadlines are met
•    Attend wider project meetings with regional Local Authorities and communicate across Newcastle University and wider project partners

Data Management and Delivery
•    Collect and collate data from NU Farms; Nafferton- Methane measurements and cow data; Cockle Park- Soil sensing data
•    Work with software engineers, academics, farm and technical teams to collect, maintain and distribute up-to-date records, SOPs and farm and other data that enables effective monitoring, control and evaluation for this project
•    Take responsibility for data integrity, including collection and consolidation of project data

Dissemination and Knowledge Exchange
•    Support delivery of use cases in collaboration with project partners, including documenting benefits and learning evidence
•    Contribute to engagement activities, including events with farmers and other stakeholders
•    Collaborate with North of Tyne Local Authority, the Digital Catapult and project partners to ensure project knowledge exchange deliverables are met

The Person

Attributes and Behaviours
•    Prior experience in an on-farm R&D environment
•    Evidence of having worked in a data collection and data organisation type role
•    Experience in handling of complex and varied datasets (and commercial Farm Data systems Desirable)
•    Excellent communication skills, and evidence of working as a member of a team
•    Awareness of relevant scientific methodologies for data gathering
•    An ability to problem-solve and prioritise (with experience of data management systems Desirable)

Qualifications
•    Master’s degree in Agriculture or related field

Newcastle University is a global University where everyone is treated with dignity and respect.  As a University of Sanctuary, we aim to provide a welcoming place of safety for all, offering opportunities to people fleeing violence and persecution.

We are committed to being a fully inclusive university which actively recruits, supports and retains colleagues from all sectors of society.  We value diversity as well as celebrate, support and thrive on the contributions of all of our employees and the communities they represent.  We are proud to be an equal opportunities employer and encourage applications from individuals who can complement our existing teams, we believe that success is built on having teams whose backgrounds and experiences reflect the diversity of our university and student population.

At Newcastle University we hold a silver Athena Swan award in recognition of our good employment practices for the advancement of gender equality.  We also hold a Race Equality Charter Bronze award in recognition of our work towards tackling race inequality in higher education REC.  We are a Disability Confident employer and will offer an interview to disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the role as part of the offer and interview scheme.

In addition, we are a member of the Euraxess initiative supporting researchers in Europe. 

Requisition ID: 26644