Research Associate In Bee Health

The Role

We are looking for an enthusiastic and innovative researcher to work as part of a team on a grant funded by the EU Horizon Europe programme. The BeeGuards consortium consists of 27 partners including scientists, beekeepers and beekeeping associations, consulting and technology companies, from 16 countries. The 4-year project starting in October 2023, aims to provide sustainable management practices, novel breeding strategies, and digital and forecasting tools that will allow the beekeeping sector to adapt to a changing environment.

Newcastle University are responsible for the delivery of Work package 6. entitled “Understanding climate as a driver of Parasites & Pathogens and mitigating their impact”. The postdoc will be involved in developing models that predict the spread of pests and diseases in a changing climate; setting up experiments that help us better understand the impact climate shocks can have on honey Bee Health; testing honey bee and wild bees for the presence of pathogens to assess spill over risk; and developing breeding tools to improve the management of emerging diseases. These tasks will require a combination of data carpentry, modelling, handling live honey bees in laboratory; setting up field studies; and testing for pathogens using real-time qPCR. These tasks will be performed in collaboration with project partners.

You will be responsible for the collection, collation, processing, analysis, presentation (writing, graph production, image production and oral presentations at national/international conferences) and storage of research data in accurate, secure, detailed, and up-to-date records of all work.

You will work under the guidance of Professor Giles Budge (Work Package 6 Lead) with additional support from Professor Steve Rushton (biological modeller).

Key Accountabilities

• Use initiative and creativity to analyse and interpret research data and draw conclusions on the outcomes;
• Co-ordinate own work with that of others, deal with problems which may affect the achievement of research objectives and contribute to the planning of project delivery;
• Present information on research progress and outcomes to Work Package Leader and oversees collaborators;
• Write up results from own research activity and provide input into the research project’s dissemination (reports, presentations, publications);
• Work to deadlines and manage, with support, competing priorities;
• Ensure that personal knowledge in relevant field of study is kept up to date;
• Undertake relevant training and development activities to develop capacity for taking on wider responsibilities;
• Develop, with advice, an awareness of own professional development needs and a personal development strategy;
• Liaise with research colleagues and support staff on day-to-day issues.

The Person (Essential)

Knowledge, Skills and Experience

• Strong skills in quantitative modelling methods and statistics;
• Good working knowledge of data carpentry and handling large data sets;
• Experience of using programming languages (e.g. R, Python) for manipulating and analysing datasets;
• Strong computing skills;
• Experience of handling live insects;
• Training in practical beekeeping would be an advantage;
• Practical experience of molecular techniques e.g. qRT-PCR;
• Ability to use personal initiative and creativity to solve research problems;
• Proven ability to work collaboratively with colleagues;
• Highly developed communication skills to engage effectively with diverse audiences, both orally and in writing, using a range of media;
• Eagerness to conduct research that can influence policy and industry.

Attributes and Behaviour

• Well organised, with excellent time management;
• Motivated and enthusiastic;
• Innovative and flexible in approach;
• Strong team-working ethos;
• Ability and willingness to travel locally, within UK and internationally for meetings and conferences;
• Ability to work independently and as part of a multidisciplinary team;
• Ability to work flexibly;
• Enthusiasm to keep abreast of relevant methodological developments;
• The successful applicant will need to work with adult worker honey bees and so the post is not suitable for those with a known allergy to bee stings or a phobia about working with live insects;
• Due to the seasonal nature of field work involved in this project the candidate may be required to work at weekends.

Qualifications

Essential

• Good honours degree (or equivalent) in a Natural Sciences discipline;
• Post graduate research degree with experience in biological modelling;
• Subject knowledge in a discipline relevant to delivering the research programme (Honey bee biology, epidemiology);
• Experience of writing up research for publication.

Desirable

• Postgraduate research experience gained either via previous employment or during postgraduate studies.