Req #: 240990 Department: SCHOOL OF AQUATIC AND FISHERY SCIENCES Appointing Department Web Address: http://FISH.UW.EDU Posting Date: 11/14/2024 Closing Info: Closes On 11/21/2024 Salary: $6,024 - $6,150 per month Shift: First Shift Notes: As a UW employee, you will enjoy generous benefits and work/life programs. For a complete description of our benefits for this position, please visit our website, click here. (https://hr.uw.edu/benefits/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2018/02/benefits-professional-staff-librarians-academic-staff-20230701\_a11y.pdf) As a UW employee, you have a unique opportunity to change lives on our campuses, in our state and around the world. UW employees offer their boundless energy, creative problem-solving skills and dedication to build stronger minds and a healthier world. UW faculty and staff also enjoy outstanding benefits, professional growth opportunities and unique resources in an environment noted for diversity, intellectual excitement, artistic pursuits and natural beauty. The purpose and goal of the research is to develop robust models and forecasts of species distributions and bycatch potential in west coast fisheries, with a focus on Pacific hake. Pacific hake is the largest fishery, by volume, in the U.S. West coast. They are fished largely through large trawl nets that target fish aggregations whose species composition is unknown until capture. Pacific Hake are highly mobile, and respond to changing ocean conditions such as temperature, oxygen, and food availability. Pacific hake are also captured in other fisheries – primarily groundfish trawl surveys. Because of regulations on who is permitted to captured Pacific Hake and other species, incidental capture of species in fisheries (called “bycatch”) often means that they must be discarded back into the sea, usually as dead carcasses. Thus, a goal for sustainable fisheries is to minimize bycatch of Pacific hake in non-Hake fisheries and vice versa. This project will analyze data from NOAA fisheries and other partners to produce tools that can help predict when and where this incidental catch will occur. If these regions can be reasonably predicted by oceanographic conditions, or are relatively stable year-over-year, then this information can be shared with members of the fishing industry to avoid areas where incidental catch is likely to be high. **DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES** The position’s major duties will involve the application of spatial statistical models of fishery dependent and fishery independent (e.g. through reported catches by fishing vessels) to answer several questions to aid in the sustainable management of Pacific hake, the largest fishery (by volume) in the U.S. West Coast. Specific responsibilities include: **Design and Methodology – 55%** Develop statistical models (e.g., write R code to compile raw data, and process data to make it suitable for analysis, run geospatial models such as sdmTMB) to predict bycatch rates from past data, and test the ability to robustly predict bycatch rates based on location of capture and environmental indices such as water temperature and other aggregate indices. Design statistical models to predict Pacific hake local abundance from past data and test the ability to predict local density based on location of capture and environmental indices such as water temperature and other aggregate indices. Select forecasts of environmental indices that can reliably bycatch potential and ‘hotspots’, particularly with respect to the Pacific hake fishery. **Research and Analysis – 35%** Produce scripts in the R programming language that conduct the above analyses, with full documentation so that they can be shared at the completion of the project. Lead and collaborate with other researchers on formulating analytical methods. This includes choosing the appropriate statistical models, making decisions on data processing and data imputation. Collate available data from NOAA, including information from their trawl surveys and from observations on board fishing vessels, and environmental information from NOAA monitoring platforms. Process data as necessary to combine information from multiple sources and to remove incomplete data records, and conduct quality assurance and quality control on that data used in analysis. Identify and apply appropriate skill-testing routines, and use these to characterize the predictive ability of alternative fitted statistical models. Diagnose performance issues, and suggest solutions to solve them. Produce summary tables and graphics that reveal the results of the above analyses. **Written, Visual, and Verbal Communication – 10%** Lead a peer-reviewed manuscript describing the results of the above analysis, provide open-source R code stemming from project analyses, and sharing of project results with NOAA scientists and academic and stakeholder partners. Collaborate with other researchers on writing manuscript(s) for peer-reviewed scientific publication. This includes maintaining regular meetings with project time to update on progress and challenges, producing drafts for author review on a schedule set by the research time, responding to co-author comments comprehensively and thoughtfully, in a timely fashion, submitting manuscripts to peer reviewed journals, and leading subsequent revisions based on peer-review comments. Effectively communicate to and hear questions/ideas from collaborators, project sponsors, practitioners, stakeholders, and rightsholders at meetings. Schedule regular project team meetings, and lead project updates by providing summaries to the research team in the form of briefings (PowerPoint or text documents). Create clear figures, tables, and diagrams of research findings for manuscript(s) and presentations. Clearly communicate complex research objectives, data sets, methods, and findings to diverse audiences. Presenting research at regional and national scientific conferences. **MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS** Bachelor’s degree in Fisheries, Oceanography, and/or Marine Resource Management, and four years of fisheries, oceanography, or marine resources management experience or other relevant experience; OR Equivalent combination of education/experience. **ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS** • Familiarity with physical oceanography of the US west cost and its ecosystem linkages. • Experience with R programming language. • Strong quantitative skills and strong written and oral communication skills. • Demonstrated ability to write manuscripts for peer-reviewed scientific journal publication. • Experience with open science practices and ability to work in a collaborative setting. • Ability to establish and maintain positive, ethical, and professional interpersonal relationships. **DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS** • Masters degree in Fisheries, Oceanography, and/or Marine Resource Management • Proficiency with open science tools. • One or more first authored peer-reviewed publications. • Demonstrated ability to work independently, stay organized, and execute logical judgement. • Demonstrates an inquisitive mind to learn quickly and innovate collaboratively. • Outstanding interpersonal skills, including team ethic and relationship building. • Ability to establish and maintain positive, ethical, and professional working relationships with other professional contacts and practitioners from a wide variety of backgrounds in the region—including members of racial, ethnic, and sexual minority populations—and be respectful of individual and cultural differences. **Application Process:** The application process may include completion of a variety of online assessments to obtain additional information that will be used in the evaluation process. These assessments may include Work Authorization, Cover Letter and/or others. Any assessments that you need to complete will appear on your screen as soon as you select “Apply to this position”. Once you begin an assessment, it must be completed at that time; if you do not complete the assessment, you will be prompted to do so the next time you log into your “My Jobs” page. If you choose to take it later, it will appear on your "My Jobs" page to take when you are ready. Please note that your application will not be reviewed, and you will not be considered for this position until all required assessments have been completed. University of Washington is an affirmative action and equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to, among other things, race, religion, color, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, sex, age, protected veteran or disabled status, or genetic information.