The Opportunity:

Quantitative Genetics and Breeding scientist - KTP Associate

Aquanzo (Edinburgh & St. Andrews) and The Roslin Institute (Edinburgh) have been awarded a Knowledge Transfer Partnership (KTP) to develop and implement a breeding programme for artemia farming and pioneer scalable, affordable, improved, and sustainable artemia eggs for the aquaculture hatchery industry. We seek an independent and motivated KTP Associate to drive this ambitious project. The post-holder will conduct research and implementation of the quantitative genetics and breeding for artemia in collaboration with Aquanzo.

Aquanzo is an AgriTech startup based in St Andrews pioneering the transition of marine ingredients from harvesting to farming. To achieve that, they are paving the way to domesticate a marine zooplankton (artemia) and developing technologies to secure the future of sustainable aquaculture.

The Roslin Institute is a world-class centre for research on the quantitative genetics of populations, particularly in livestock, companion animals, aquaculture, forests, and crops.

This post is full-time (35 hours per week). The post-holder will work with Dr Remi Gratacap and Stefanie Lobnig at Aquanzo in Edinburgh and St Andrews, supported by Prof Gregor Gorjanc and Dr Ivan Pocrnic and their labs within The Roslin Institute (Quantitative Biology division) on the Easter Bush Campus in Edinburgh.

The post comes with a significant training and travel budget for personal and professional development. The post is fixed term, for 24 months.

Informal enquiries should be addressed to Dr Remi Gratacap (remi@aquanzo.com), Prof Gregor Gorjanc (gregor.gorjanc@roslin.ed.ac.uk), or Dr Ivan Pocrnic (ivan.pocrnic@roslin.ed.ac.uk).

Your skills and attributes for success:

• You are passionate about genetic management and population improvement and want to impact the aquaculture industry practically.
• You either come from a quantitative genetics and breeding background or a bioinformatics background, intending to learn how to apply the other background. 
• You are independent, organised, and thrive in collaboration with multidisciplinary teams working in a rapidly emerging sector.
• Please inspect the call documentation regarding the essential and desirable knowledge, skills and experience needed for the post.

Click to view a copy of the full job description (opens new browser tab)

As a valued member of our team you can expect:

• A competitive salary of £41,732 per annum.
• An exciting, positive, creative, challenging, and rewarding place to work. You will have opportunities to grow and contribute to the work of Aquanzo and Roslin, with a possibility to secure employment with Aquanzo beyond this project.
• To be part of a diverse and vibrant international community
• Comprehensive Staff Benefits, such as a generous holiday entitlement, a defined benefits pension scheme, staff discounts, family-friendly initiatives, and flexible work options. Check out the full list on our staff benefits page (opens in a new tab) and use our reward calculator to discover the total value of your pay and benefits 

Championing equality, diversity and inclusion

The University of Edinburgh holds a Silver Athena SWAN award in recognition of our commitment to advance gender equality in higher education. We are members of the Race Equality Charter and we are also Stonewall Scotland Diversity Champions, actively promoting LGBT equality. 

Prior to any employment commencing with the University you will be required to evidence your right to work in the UK. Further information is available on our right to work webpages (opens new browser tab)

The University is able to sponsor the employment of international workers in this role. If successful, an international applicant requiring sponsorship to work in the UK will need to satisfy the UK Home Office’s English Language requirements and apply for and secure a Skilled Worker Visa.

Unless stated otherwise the closing time for applications is 11:59pm GMT. If you are applying outside the UK the closing time on our adverts automatically adjusts to your browsers local time zone. 

 

Interviews will be held soon after the closing date.