TITLE: Research Assistant (Requisition #2007010593)
START DATE: December 3, 2007
SALARY: Commensurate with education and experience. Continued employment contingent upon federal funding
PREFER: The successful applicant will have a keen interest in plants coupled with field experience in plant identification and the use of dichotomous keys. Other preferred qualifications include knowledge of Chihuahuan Desert flora and fauna, practical experience with electrical and mechanical maintenance of climatological and hydrological instruments, and skill in the use of hand and power tools.
The successful candidate will be flexible, able to enjoy working in the field under high heat and sun exposure (as this is primarily a desert field position), work reliably both independently and as part of a team, establish and maintain effective working relationships with associates and principle investigators, be comfortable working safely with moderately hazardous materials, make sound judgments relative to analytical processes, recognize the extreme accuracy and consistency essential to long term research, assemble and record accurate data, follow detailed oral and/or written instructions exactly, communicate well both verbally and in writing, and have some supervisory skills. Acute attention to small details, enthusiasm, and the ability to get along well with co-workers, supervisors, and principle investigators are highly desired.
REQUIREMENTS: Driver's license.
QUALIFICATIONS: A Bachelor's degree in field of research applicable to the position required.
RESPONSIBILITIES: Work is based out of New Mexico State University in Las Cruces, NM. Individual will participate in the on-going and multi-disciplinary Jornada Basin Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) program on desertification in the Chihuahuan Desert. At this time research disciplines include plant ecology (~25%), soils (~20%), animal ecology (~9%), climatology (~5%), aeolian studies (~8%), and hydrology. Approximately 85% of the time will be spent outdoors collecting data, with the remaining 15% of the time spent in the lab processing samples, cleaning equipment, entering and checking data. Although the position is usually 40 hours a week, additional hours will occasionally be required both during the week and on weekends.
Specific field responsibilities include extensive plant identification and measurements; soil moisture measurements using a neutron probe; collection of hydrology data and maintenance of hydrological equipment; maintenance of field instruments, equipment, and infrastructure; and some handling and identification of small mammals. The position will entail manual labor such as routine carrying of heavy instruments in the field for extended periods, maintaining and fixing fences, and painting large structures, and could include tasks like shrub removal, trenching, and soil coring. The individual will work with a wide variety of taxa and will be required to learn identification of all flora (~350 spp.) and selected fauna found in the research area.
General responsibilities include collecting and recording moderately complex data in both field and laboratory environments in accordance with established protocols, data entry, maintaining organizational and historical data for each study, aiding principle investigators with data collection and experimental design (assisting with design, testing, and/or modification of experimental equipment as well as installation of experimental apparatus).
For more information about the Jornada Basin LTER site and general research program, see http://jornada-www.nmsu.edu/.
BENEFITS: Group medical and hospital insurance, group life insurance, state education retirement, worker's compensation, annual leave, sick leave, and unemployment compensation.
Review of APPLICATIONS: Review of applications will begin November 5, 2007 and continue until filled. Submit letter of interest, resume or CV, and 3 references with contact information. Electronic submissions must be in MS WORD, Rich Test Format (RTF), or PDF. Other formats will not be accepted.
REPLY TO: John P. Anderson, Jornada LTER Site Manager
USDA-ARS Jornada Experimental Range Voice: 505-646-5818
P.O. Box 30003 Fax: 505-646-5889
MSC 3JER New Mexico State University Email: janderso@jornada.nmsu.edu
Las Cruces, NM 88003-0001 [2995 Knox Street, Suite 200 for FedEx, etc.]
OFFER OF EMPLOYMENT CONTINGENT UPON VERIFICATION OF INDIVIDUAL'S ELIGIBILITY FOR EMPLOYMENT IN THE UNITED STATES. NMSU IS AN EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY/AFFIRMATIVE ACTION EMPLOYER.
John Anderson
P.O. Box 30003, MSC 3JER
New Mexico State University
Las Cruces, NM 88003
voice: 505-646-5818
fax: 505-646-5889
e-mail: janderso@nmsu.edu
START DATE: December 3, 2007
SALARY: Commensurate with education and experience. Continued employment contingent upon federal funding
PREFER: The successful applicant will have a keen interest in plants coupled with field experience in plant identification and the use of dichotomous keys. Other preferred qualifications include knowledge of Chihuahuan Desert flora and fauna, practical experience with electrical and mechanical maintenance of climatological and hydrological instruments, and skill in the use of hand and power tools.
The successful candidate will be flexible, able to enjoy working in the field under high heat and sun exposure (as this is primarily a desert field position), work reliably both independently and as part of a team, establish and maintain effective working relationships with associates and principle investigators, be comfortable working safely with moderately hazardous materials, make sound judgments relative to analytical processes, recognize the extreme accuracy and consistency essential to long term research, assemble and record accurate data, follow detailed oral and/or written instructions exactly, communicate well both verbally and in writing, and have some supervisory skills. Acute attention to small details, enthusiasm, and the ability to get along well with co-workers, supervisors, and principle investigators are highly desired.
REQUIREMENTS: Driver's license.
QUALIFICATIONS: A Bachelor's degree in field of research applicable to the position required.
RESPONSIBILITIES: Work is based out of New Mexico State University in Las Cruces, NM. Individual will participate in the on-going and multi-disciplinary Jornada Basin Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) program on desertification in the Chihuahuan Desert. At this time research disciplines include plant ecology (~25%), soils (~20%), animal ecology (~9%), climatology (~5%), aeolian studies (~8%), and hydrology. Approximately 85% of the time will be spent outdoors collecting data, with the remaining 15% of the time spent in the lab processing samples, cleaning equipment, entering and checking data. Although the position is usually 40 hours a week, additional hours will occasionally be required both during the week and on weekends.
Specific field responsibilities include extensive plant identification and measurements; soil moisture measurements using a neutron probe; collection of hydrology data and maintenance of hydrological equipment; maintenance of field instruments, equipment, and infrastructure; and some handling and identification of small mammals. The position will entail manual labor such as routine carrying of heavy instruments in the field for extended periods, maintaining and fixing fences, and painting large structures, and could include tasks like shrub removal, trenching, and soil coring. The individual will work with a wide variety of taxa and will be required to learn identification of all flora (~350 spp.) and selected fauna found in the research area.
General responsibilities include collecting and recording moderately complex data in both field and laboratory environments in accordance with established protocols, data entry, maintaining organizational and historical data for each study, aiding principle investigators with data collection and experimental design (assisting with design, testing, and/or modification of experimental equipment as well as installation of experimental apparatus).
For more information about the Jornada Basin LTER site and general research program, see http://jornada-www.nmsu.edu/.
BENEFITS: Group medical and hospital insurance, group life insurance, state education retirement, worker's compensation, annual leave, sick leave, and unemployment compensation.
Review of APPLICATIONS: Review of applications will begin November 5, 2007 and continue until filled. Submit letter of interest, resume or CV, and 3 references with contact information. Electronic submissions must be in MS WORD, Rich Test Format (RTF), or PDF. Other formats will not be accepted.
REPLY TO: John P. Anderson, Jornada LTER Site Manager
USDA-ARS Jornada Experimental Range Voice: 505-646-5818
P.O. Box 30003 Fax: 505-646-5889
MSC 3JER New Mexico State University Email: janderso@jornada.nmsu.edu
Las Cruces, NM 88003-0001 [2995 Knox Street, Suite 200 for FedEx, etc.]
OFFER OF EMPLOYMENT CONTINGENT UPON VERIFICATION OF INDIVIDUAL'S ELIGIBILITY FOR EMPLOYMENT IN THE UNITED STATES. NMSU IS AN EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY/AFFIRMATIVE ACTION EMPLOYER.
John Anderson
P.O. Box 30003, MSC 3JER
New Mexico State University
Las Cruces, NM 88003
voice: 505-646-5818
fax: 505-646-5889
