Senior Technician

Working as part of a technical team in a world class marine research environment requires commitment and dedication to deliver the high-quality data, we want for the science we do.

Careful preparation, attention to detail and a methodical approach are needed to ensure the equipment we take to sea is in a ready-to-go state. Research cruises can be many weeks long and everything that is need must be listed and loaded on the ship. Mobilizations can take place in ports all over the world and equipment needs to be ready and shipped weeks or months in advance. Research ships operate 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. Days at sea are long and challenging but rewarding both personally and financially.

Days on land are quite flexible and most technicians manage their own tasks and workloads to some extent. Self-reliance and motivation are important characteristics as there are times when you have to work alone and especially at sea you cannot bring in outside help. Being at the cutting edge of marine science means we are always exploring new technology and we try to make time to design and develop new equipment and get involved in new projects. Communicating with the scientists is probably the most important part of the job as they lead the direction of the technology we support, being responsive to their requirements is key to successful fieldwork.

Information about the employer

The National Oceanography Centre is one of the world’s top oceanographic institutions. 

We undertake world leading research in large scale oceanography and ocean measurement technology. Our goal is to undertake internationally excellent research and technology development to advance the frontiers of knowledge about the ocean.  We also manage several national marine facilities, including the National Marine Equipment Pool (Europe’s largest fleet of autonomous and robotic vehicles), and two state of the art research ships RRS Discovery and RRS James Cook. https://noc.ac.uk/