This post will take a lead in co-ordinating the scientific and technical development of the model system (which is carried out jointly with Proudman Oceanographic Laboratory and Plymouth Marine Laboratory) and in pulling through scientific developments to application.

Main duties and responsibilities

Working in the shelf seas modelling team the job holder will be responsible for planning and carrying out the development, assessment and maintenance of the Met Office forecast models for shallow waters and shelf seas, providing pre-operational assessment of the models, and liaising with developers of applications, both within the Met Office and externally

Specifically the job holder will:

• manage development of operational shelf seas forecast models and maintenance of associated infrastructure in line with upgrades to operational NWP;
  
• assess all aspects (both scientific and computational) of performance of the operational shelf seas models;
  
• plan and develop upgrades to the operational shelf seas forecast models to meet user and business requirements, co-ordinating with scientific developments at POL and at PML;
  
• as part of the shelf seas modelling team, assist with implementing the relocatable tidal model to meet user requirements;
  
• liaise with developers of applications of shelf seas forecasts, to provide demonstrations.

The job holder will be expected to liaise both with external research institutes and within the Met Office. He/she may be required to make presentations, to contribute to written reports and papers, to liaise with other international centres and to attend international meetings.

Person specification

Essential

• A good degree (equivalent 2:1 or above) in a technical or scientific subject. (a 2:2 may be considered in exceptional circumstances)
  
• Demonstrated knowledge of physical oceanography of tidal coastal waters
  
• Proven ability to program numerical models in Fortran for a Unix/Linux environment
  
• Evidence of good team working, interpersonal and communication skills

Desirable

• Be experienced with numerical models of the atmosphere or ocean, preferably of the tidal coastal ocean
  
• Have knowledge of marine ecosystem modelling
  
• Have recent working knowledge of Fortran90
  
• Have recent working knowledge of using PV-Wave or other visualisation or data manipulation routines
  

Benefits and facilities

• A choice of final salary and stakeholder pension giving you the flexibility to choose the pension that suits you the best
• Annual leave allowance of 25 days (plus 8 days public holiday and 2½ privilege days taken at fixed times during the year)
• Training opportunities
• Performance-related pay
• Met Office sports and social club
• The potential to work in different areas within the same organisation

Guaranteed Interview Scheme for disabled applicants

To widen the pool of candidates on which to draw, we guarantee an interview to any disabled applicant who meets the published minimum criteria for the post/entry level.

To qualify for a guaranteed interview, you do not have to be registered as a disabled person but you must have a disability or long term health condition that puts you at a substantial disadvantage in either obtaining or keeping employment. The disability must be likely to last for at least 12 months.

To apply for a guaranteed interview, please complete the appropriate section of the application form. When appropriate, you should provide details of any particular arrangements you will require for the interview, e.g. car parking, speech facilitator.

Any false declaration of disability to obtain an interview may invalidate any resultant contract of employment.

Nationality

In common with all United Kingdom (UK) Civil Service departments and Executive Agencies, applicants for employment in the Met Office are required to satisfy certain nationality requirements.

In general you must be either

• a British citizen or
• a Commonwealth citizen or
• a British protected person or
• a national of the European Economic Area or a certain family member of an European Economic Area national; the European Economic Area is comprised of the member states of the European Union and certain member states of the European Free Trade Area.

Citizens from countries not included in the above list may be considered in exceptional circumstances.

Again, in common with all United Kingdom (UK) Civil Service departments and Executive Agencies, some posts in the Met Office are 'reserved' for UK Nationals only. Applicants who are not UK Nationals should be aware that further career prospects might be affected. Staff have a mobility commitment which means they may be required to serve at other UK mainland locations where posts are reserved.

How to apply

Application forms and further information:

Met Office
HR Customer Services Team
FitzRoy Road
Exeter
EX1 3PB

Telephone: 01392 886035/886031/884725

Please your request or returned application form Shelf Seas Modeller