Postdoctoral Research Fellowship Developing and evaluating methods to forecast recruitment during rebuilding plans, incorporating autocorrelation and environmental effects Agency: National Marine Fisheries Service Location: Northwest Fisheries Science Center, Seattle, WA Application process: NRC Research Fellowship (http://sites.nationalacademies.org/pga/rap/); other venues possible Salary: $56,000 + benefits + $3,000 for travel Last date to apply: Until filled
Description: Population dynamics for many federally managed and commercially important species is driven in part by variability in recruitment. Recruitment will often exhibit substantial autocorrelation, whether due to environmental drivers for cohort strength, changes in predation pressure, and/or changes in productivity over time. However, this autocorrelation is not generally modeled during population forecasts, whether used for short-term decisions about harvest levels or longer-term decisions regarding fishery rebuilding plans. For this reason, Dr. James Thorson, Liz Brooks, and Rick Methot seek applications from postodoctoral candidates with demonstrated experience with stock assessment models and fisheries science, including peer-reviewed publications and preferably some involvement in previous stock assessments. The selected applicant will work closely with all three researchers, and will also attend an ICES Study Group on Recruitment Forecasting (http://www.ices.dk/ community/groups/Pages/SGRF.aspx) in Copenhagen in June 2014. The applicant may also chose to collaborate on other topics related to forecasting recruitment including (but not limited to) projections of recruitment given changes in global temperature, forecasts involving correlations among species, and probabilistic recruitment projections in fishery rebuilding plans. Qualifications Applicants must have completed a Doctoral degree or be on track to finish one by summer of 2014. The NRC Fellowship position is set to begin by June 2014 and will be funded for one year. Applicants are encouraged from a wide variety of disciplines (ecology, fisheries, statistics, and related fields), but applicants with experience in population modelling will be favored. Fluency with a computer language (e.g., R, C++) is required. Inquiries should be sent to Drs. Thorson and Brooks by email. Please include a CV (including past publications and experience with stock assessment), and names and contact information for three references. Contact persons: Dr. James Thorson, [email protected] Dr. Liz Brooks, [email protected]
