Climate Impacts Foundation Scientist

Met Office; Devon and Torbay; Hybrid; GBP 26,000 - 39,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading meteorological organization is seeking a Climate Impacts Foundation Scientist to develop climate impact models and collaborate with national governments. The role requires a degree in a relevant scientific field, experience in programming, and strong communication skills. The position offers hybrid working options and a competitive salary package, including a substantial pension and generous annual leave.

Benefits

Civil Service pension

Generous annual leave

Hybrid working options

Qualifications

• Strong background in climate impacts and earth system science.
• Aptitude for using impact models or data-based approaches.
• Ability to deliver high-quality outputs under tight deadlines.

Responsibilities

• Develop and utilize the JULES land surface model.
• Collaborate on climate change risk assessments.
• Present findings at scientific conferences.

Skills

Scientific programming (Python, Fortran)

Communication skills

Organizational skills

Education

Degree in a relevant scientific field

Job description

Overview

We\'re looking for an exceptional Climate Impacts Foundation Scientist to help us make a difference to our planet.

As our Climate Impacts Foundation 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 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 agree 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

The successful candidate will be joining the Climate Impacts Modelling team in the Earth System and Mitigation Science group in Climate Science. You will be joining a team that quantifies multi-sector climate impacts at a global and regional scale, particularly in sectors relating to health, food, water and energy security.

We work with UK and other national governments to inform on the impacts that may be avoided via climate change mitigation measures, the additional impacts associated with over-shooting climate targets, or the societal and ecosystem consequences of exceeding climate tipping points.

Your key duties:

• Use and develop the JULES land surface model for understanding climate impacts on society and ecosystems, their response to future scenarios of change, and interactions with other earth system processes
• Work with colleagues in the CIM team and the wider Met Office to develop risk-based approaches for understanding the implications of climate change
• Be part of our contribution to the Inter-Sectoral Impacts Model Inter-comparison Project (ISIMIP)
• Communicate project outputs in peer-reviewed publications, reports and other media e.g. blogs.
• Present to national and international science conferences, policy or user meetings and public audiences.

Why join us

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 Climate Impacts Foundation Scientist, your total reward package will be up to £38,280 annually, which includes:

• £26,954 base pay
• An outstanding Civil Service pension, with an average employer contribution of 28.97%
• 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 good background in a relevant scientific field to at least degree level (2:1 or above), or equivalent experience
2. Knowledge of climate impacts, earth system science and/or climate
3. An aptitude and an interest in using impact models or data-based approaches for assessments of climate impacts and relevant earth system processes
4. Experience of scientific programming, for example python and/or Fortran
5. Strong organisational skills, with demonstrated ability to deliver high-quality output successfully, both independently and as part of a team, meeting tight deadlines, planning and organising own work as required
6. Strong oral and written communication skills, with demonstrated ability to communicate complex scientific and/or technical information clearly and effectively to a range of audiences. For example, contributing to scientific outputs and presenting own work

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 05/10/2025 at 23:59 with first stage interviews commencing from 03/11/2025. You will hear from us once the closing date has passed.

Using AI in your application

We welcome applications that use AI tools for support in drafting or refining, as long as they accurately reflect your own skills and experience. All hiring decisions at the Met Office are made by people, not AI. For more details, visit our approach to recruitment.

How we can help

If you have any questions or would like to discuss this opportunity further, please contact us at .

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, 2 of these years must be immediately preceding the point of your application. You will need to achieve full security clearance within your first 6 months with us.