[MB advising: see link at bottom of post to full job posting and application details (will expire when position is filled). The following are excerpts from the full position description, do not necessarily include full details, and are provided for the purposes of career exploration.]

The Cooperative Institute for Marine and Atmospheric Studies (CIMAS) at the Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science of the University of Miami has an exciting opportunity for a full-time Research Associate II to work as a Marine Mammal Passive Acoustic Technician in Miami, Florida.

The successful applicant will be a member of the NOAA National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) Southeast Fisheries Science Center (SEFSC) Marine Mammal and Turtle Division.  Research in the marine mammal laboratory at SEFSC is focused on assessing the distribution, seasonal density, and abundance of marine mammal stocks in the Gulf of Mexico, southeastern US waters of the North Atlantic, and the Caribbean.  The successful applicant’s primary duties will include: 1) planning, organizing, and conducting passive acoustic field research including maintaining and servicing moored archival recorders and participating in ship-based surveys, 2) managing acoustic data collected during field research from long-term acoustic moorings and ship-based acoustic surveys, and 3) conducting data analyses and interpretation of long-term passive acoustic datasets to address distribution, ecosystem ecology, and anthropogenic impact questions to support marine mammal stock assessments.  The researcher may spend extended periods of time at sea, including on large vessels collecting passive acoustic data from moored acoustic recorders, towed arrays, and sonobuoys, including leading the acoustic field work, ensuring quality control of data and metadata, and maintaining equipment and software.  These efforts shall focus on data collection and analysis associated with long-term monitoring of North Atlantic right whales and other endangered species, and may involve data and analyses from ship-based surveys such as the Atlantic Marine Assessment Program for Protected Species (AMAPPS) surveys.

Department Specific Functions:

• Plan, organize, and conduct passive acoustic field research, including the maintenance, deployment, and retrieval of a variety of acoustic recorders
• Maintain acoustic hardware and software, including inventory, setup, and breakdown for surveys
• Maintain and assure quality control of acoustic databases and acoustic recordings collected from ship-based surveys and moored instrument deployments
• Analyze acoustic recordings for marine mammal calls to address distribution, ecosystem ecology, and anthropogenic impact questions to support marine mammal stock assessments
• Detect and classify biological and anthropogenic noise sources to identify Gulf of Mexico and North Atlantic Ocean marine mammals to species
• Manage and analyze large datasets efficiently
• Efficiently use a variety of acoustic analysis techniques and software, such as Matlab, R, Triton, and PAMGUARD
• Participate in and lead passive acoustic data collection and management during large-vessel surveys up to 60 days duration
• Work on several projects simultaneously, set priorities to achieve project goals and deadlines.
• Write reports and present findings in scientific settings including in peer-reviewed publications.

Minimum Qualifications:

• The successful applicant must have a Bachelor’s degree in Biology, Marine Science, Oceanography, Acoustics, Engineering, or a related field, and at least 2 years of demonstrated experience in passive acoustic data collection and analysis for marine species, preferably marine mammals.
• Necessary experience includes:

1) conducting data analyses and interpretation of long-term passive acoustic datasets for marine species, preferably marine mammals. Familiarity with detection and classification methods and large data sets is essential.

2) planning, organizing, and conducting passive acoustic field research, including the maintenance, deployment, and retrieval of a variety of acoustic recorders, including moored archival recorders

3) assuring quality control of  raw acoustic data and metadata databases, and maintaining specialized acoustic hardware and software

4) using Pamguard, Triton, SQLlite, MS Access, MS Excel, and other specialized passive acoustic and data management software, as well as basic statistical and data management skills

5) the ability and desire to work as part of a collaborative team, including during extended (up to 60 days) large vessel surveys

• Beneficial experience can include work in soundscape acoustics, environmental data analyses, habitat modeling, acoustic localization and tracking, real-time data collection using towed arrays and sonobuoys, and knowledge of NOAA marine mammal stock assessment methodologies.
• The ideal person will have excellent problem solving and critical thinking skills, strong attention to detail, strong organizational skills, and the ability to plan daily duties.    Excellent oral and written communication skills will be helpful to communicate with a diverse group of people in collaborative projects.

full position description/application (link will expire when filled)