CALL FOR A JUNIOR RESEARCHER (M/F) - 1 VACANCY

Reference: CCMAR/ID/19/2018

Job summary: The Algarve Centre for Marine Sciences (CCMAR) opens a call for a Junior Researcher (M/F), under a 12 months fixed term employment contract, within cost centre: GREENER GRAZING - Consultancy and R&D services in Aquaculture area: Seaweeds.

Working Plan: 
The  Junior Researcher will be responsible for:
⦁    Developing cellular biotechnology techniques using macroalgae. 
⦁    Developing techniques for protoplasts isolation from green and red macroalgae tissues.  
⦁    Maintenance and regeneration of isolated protoplasts.
⦁    Development and maintenance of experimental growing macroalgae systems in laboratory and outdoor environments.
⦁    Performing laboratory experiments in the field of breeding, physiology and biotechnology.
⦁    Performing experiments of biomass production and of halogenated compounds optimization in different conditions.
⦁    Extracting halogenated compounds and using GC-MS for quantification.

Regulation
⦁    Portuguese Labour Law, approved by Law nr 7/2009, from 12th February in its current form.  

Starting Date: The contract is expected to start in February 2019 and will remain for 12 months.
Workplace: the activities will be developed at CCMAR installations (Gambelas Campus of the Algarve University, Portugal), Ramalhete Experimental Station, and/or other necessary locations to their execution.
Working Schedule: 35 hours per week.

Monthly Remuneration: Gross monthly Remuneration is 2.328,34€.
Application Period:  between 13th and 31th of December 2018.  

Mandatory Required Profile: Any National, foreign and stateless candidate(s) that hold the following requirements can apply:
1.    a PhD in biology or similar field.
2.    demonstrated experience and scientific curriculum in macroalgae breeding, (maintenance and propagation) and biotechnology (bio prospecting).
3.    have excellent knowledge of the English language (spoken and written).

Non-compliance with any of these requirements invalidates the application. Provision of false documentation will be punished by law.
  
Members of the Jury: the jury nominated is composed of Dr. Leonardo Filipe Rodrigues da Mata, responsible researcher at CCMAR for the consultancy project (President of the Jury); Professor Rui Orlando Pimenta Santos, Associated Professor with agregação at Algarve University and researcher at CCMAR (member); Dr. João Miguel Sousa da Silva, researcher at CCMAR (member).

Evaluation criteria: The evaluation is carried out in two phases, which will result in a final classification between 0 and 100 points.

First phase: Curricular assessment
The selection is made through the evaluation of the motivation letter which will include relevant activities and career development plan, and curriculum vitae, which will include the candidate’s scientific and professional career path focusing on the relevance, quality, and timeliness of the criteria referred to in Article 5 (2) (a) to (d) of the RJEC. The following assessment criteria, and the candidate’s ability to perform the duties required, will be considered:

CA) Scientific, technological, cultural production in the last five years, deemed most relevant by the candidate;
CB) Activities of applied research or based on practice, developed in the last five years, that the candidate considers with greater impact;
CC) Activities of extension and dissemination of knowledge, namely in the promotion of the culture and the scientific practices, developed in the last five years, that the candidate considers more relevant;
CD) Project management activities and programmes of science, technology and innovation, or experience in observation, monitoring and evaluation of the scientific and technological system or higher education in Portugal or abroad developed in the last five years. 
The period of five years referred in the evaluation criteria may be increased by the selection panel, at the request of the candidate, when justified on grounds of suspension of scientific activity for socially protected reasons, namely for reasons of parental leave, prolonged serious illness, and other situations of unavailability for work legally protected. 
The candidates who have obtained less than 70 points in the curricular assessment will be considered not approved in absolute merit. The decision to exclude on absolute merit is communicated to the candidates by electronic mail for the purpose of hearing with interested parties.

Second phase: Interview
If the selection panel considers it necessary for the evaluation, the top five candidates with the highest scores of the curricular assessments that were approved in absolute merit will qualify for the second phase, consisting of an individual interview, either face-to-face or through a videoconference. Interviews will be conducted up to 10 days after the decision taken by the evaluation panel. The interview will be weighted, at most, as 10% of the final classification score and will serve the sole purpose of clarifying aspects related to the results of scientific research of the candidates. 

Functioning of the Selection Panel:

Each member of the selection panel will assess all the candidates in all the factors from CA to CD scoring between 0 and 100, and must present the reasons for the scores given. Abstention is not allowed. A similar procedure will be followed regarding the candidates that are called for the interview. The candidates that are not called for an interview will have 0 points in the second phase.
The curricular assessment (C) of each candidate is obtained from the sums of the scores of each criteria multiplied by the weights according to the formulation, rounded to the decimal place.
C = CA*65 + CB*20 + CC*10 + CD*5
CA and CB will be graded based on the scientific / technological publication and research / experience demonstrated in the following areas:
1.    Experience in macroalgae lab breeding (35%).
2.    Experience in protoplasts isolation and regeneration techniques applied to macroalgae (25%).
3.    Experience in macroalgae identification using molecular genetics techniques (20%).
4.    Experience in macroalgae bio prospection for bioactive compounds in macroalgae (20%).

The final score (FS) of each candidate is obtained from the sum of the results of the curricular assessment (C) and of the interview (I), if applicable, according to the following formulation, rounded to the decimal place.
FS = C*90 + I*10
After determining the final score (FS) of all candidates, each member of the selection panel will rank the candidates according to the final scores assigned to them from the highest to the lowest. This is followed by the vote to the first place and for each successive place. A candidate is selected when they receive the majority of votes. If this does not happen in the first round of voting, the least ranked candidate is eliminated, and the procedure is repeated with the remaining candidates. In case of a draw the vote of the President of the selection panel decides.
The selection panel will write minutes of the meetings with a description of the evaluation and selection process including an ordered list of candidates, their classification, and the final decision. The CCMAR Board of Directors shall validate the final decision of the selection panel.
In the event that no applicant has the necessary profile, or the funding conditions have significantly changed since the announcement of this position, the selection committee reserves the right to close the call without any recruitment. In the event that the selected person does not accept the position or resigns during the contract, the jury reserves the right, upon convenience and opportunity, to assign the post to the next applicant in accordance with the ranking positions, through a judgment of convenience and opportunity.

Application submission process and documents: Applications should be submitted via the CCMAR website https://www.ccmar.ualg.pt/list/job (only applications submitted through the CCMAR website will be considered). You should consider your application as correctly submitted only after receiving a confirmation e-mail from CCMAR. Applications (in English) should include a Motivation Letter (with a personal assessment of the relevance of the activities of the last five years for the present competition, highlighting the chosen scientific publications), copy of your PhD Diploma, Detailed CV (in accordance with the requirements and selection criteria of the application), a pdf. digital copy of up to 3 top publications more relevant, other documents deemed as relevant for the application and the email contact of up to 3 references.

Results: Both admitted and excluded candidates list and final classification list shall be posted at CCMAR (Universidade do Algarve, edf. 7), at CCMAR website at https://www.ccmar.ualg.pt/list/job-closed and all candidates will be notified by email.  

Preliminary Hearing and Final Decision Deadline: after notification, all candidates have 10 working days to respond. The final decisions will be announced within 90 days of the deadline.

Pursuant to Decree-Law nr 29/2001 of 3rd February, disabled candidates shall be preferred in a situation of equal classification, and said preference supersedes any legal preferences. Candidates must declare, on their honour, their respective disability degree, type of disability and communication / expression means to be used during selection period on their application form, under the regulations above.
CCMAR’s non-discrimination and equal access opportunities policy – No candidate can be privileged, benefited, jeopardised or be deprived of any right or exempt of any claim in regards to descendent, age, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, economic situation, origin, social economy, genetic heritage, disability, chronic disease, nationality, ethnicity, territory of origin, language, religion, politics, ideology or union membership.  
Faro, 10 th December 2018