Senior Scientist - Climate Mitigation

Job Introduction

We’re looking for an exceptional Senior Scientist - Climate Mitigation to help us make a difference to our planet.

As our Senior Climate Mitigation Scientist, the job may be suitable for hybrid working, which is where an employee works part of the week in the office and part of the week from home. This is a voluntary, non-contractual arrangement and the location advertised will be your contractual place of work.

Our opportunity is full time, 37 hours per week, but we would also consider applicants wishing to work a minimum of 30-33 hours per week and we will also try our best to consider those intending to work a job share.  Our people are at the heart of what we do and we'll do our best to find a working pattern that works for everyone.

World changing work 

From science to technology, from meteorology to management, and from planning to communication, our expertise helps us stand out as the authority on weather accuracy and climate prediction. We help individuals, industries and government to make better decisions to stay safe and thrive. This is the Met Office. This is who we are.

• We’re a force for good - focusing on our environmental and social impact
• We’re experts by nature - always learning and developing to do things better
• We live and breathe it - putting our purpose at the heart of decision-making
• We’re better together - understanding partnerships and inclusivity make us greater
• We keep evolving - pushing boundaries to make tomorrow better for our customers

Your world of expertise 

You will be an experienced simple climate modeller using the FaIR Simple Climate Model; leading the development, use and application of the model to deliver high impact policy relevant climate science.

Your key duties 

• Develop FaIR code to include more Earth system (ES) processes for more accurate emulation of ES models, therefore an active member of the FaIR community. Maintain and play a leading role in the development of the FaIR code base.
• Contribute to the development of a traceable set of Earth System Prediction capabilities suitable both for advancing process understanding and informing policy, pulling through understanding from the full complexity UKESM model to the simple models to provide advice that supports policy makers.
• Provide expert advice and support to UK Government departments such as the Department for Energy Security and Net Zero and Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office on climate change mitigation, for example, providing advice on pathways and scenarios under the HCCP.
• Work with IAM partners on scenario development and understanding mitigation options.
• Contribute to international activities e.g. Supporting IPCC projections.

 Who we are

Our work is life-changing, often life-saving and always life-enhancing. The Met Office is Great Place to Work UK certified. We are also featured on their ‘Best Workplaces in Tech’ 2023 and 2024 lists, as well as their ’54 Best Workplaces for Women’ 2023 list.

As our Senior Climate Mitigation Scientist, your total reward package will be up to £57,639 annually, which includes:

• £41,725 base pay
• An outstanding Civil Service pension, with an average employer contribution of 27%
• Annual Leave starting at 27.5 days (plus Bank Holidays) rising to 32.5 days (plus Bank Holidays) after 5 years and option to buy or sell up to 5 days per year of annual leave

Essential Criteria, skills and experience: 

1. A strong background in a relevant scientific field to PhD level, or equivalent experience (Expert by nature)
2. Demonstrated understanding and application of climate and earth system science with a publication record supporting delivery of high impact science (Keep Evolving).
3. Good scientific programming skills, for example python and/or Fortran (Expert by nature).
4. Strong organisational skills with demonstrated experience of leading, planning and organising own work and proven ability to deliver high-quality output successfully, both independently and as part of a team, meeting tight deadlines as required (Better together).
5. Strong oral and written communication skills, a contributing role on both internal and external scientific outputs with ability to communicate complex scientific and/or technical information clearly and effectively to a range of audiences (Force for good).
6. Demonstrated experience of using climate data and/or models for assessments of climate impacts/ climate projections/ mitigation scenarios or similar.

Desirable Criteria: 

We encourage you to apply if you believe you meet our essential criteria, but we’re also keen to discover if you have:

1.  A working knowledge and experience of developing the FaIR Simple Climate Model

How to apply 

If you share our values, we’d love to hear from you! Click apply to begin your application. Please complete your career history and provide evidence against each of the essential criteria in the supporting statement questionnaire. We recommend candidates use the CARL method (Context, Action, Result and Learning) for presenting evidence of experience and skills.

Closing date 05/01/2025 at 23:59 with first stage interviews commencing from 20/01/2025. You will hear from us once the closing date has passed.

How we can help

If you have any questions or would like to discuss this opportunity further, please contact us at careers@metoffice.gov.uk.  

If you’re considering applying and need support to do so, please get in touch. You can request adjustments either within your application or by contacting us. Should you be offered an interview, please be aware there may be a selection exercise which could include a presentation, written test or a scenario-based activity. You can select in your application to be considered under the Disability Confident Scheme. To be invited to interview/assessment under this scheme, your application must meet the essential criteria for the role.

We understand that great minds don’t always think alike and as an equal opportunities employer we welcome applications from those with all protected characteristics. We recruit on merit, fairness, and open competition in line with the Civil Service Code.

We can only accept applications from those eligible to live and work in the UK - please refer to GOV.UK for information. We require Security clearance, for which you need to have resided in the UK for at least 3 of the last 5 years to be eligible. You will need to achieve full security clearance within your first 6 months with us.

We are currently working through a re-prioritisation process in our Science Directorate, with some employees being asked to discontinue their current work. These employees will be given priority for internal campaigns until the re-prioritisation is complete.