Marine Science Officer

JOB TITLE: Marine Science Officer (MSO)

SALARY BAND: SG9 9

REPORTING TO: Marine Researcher (MR)

HOURS OF WORK: Minimum 40 hours per week, regular working time outside office hours is a requirement of the job

LOCATION: Based at Head Office (HO) on Mahé and several months visit to Aldabra Atoll required

Context and Background

The SIF Marine Science Officer (MSO) assists with the smooth running of SIF’s Aldabra marine research and monitoring programme. The main duties are as follows, to: (1) provide administrative, logistic and technical support in ensuring that the Aldabra Reef Monitoring programme runs efficiently and produces high quality outputs; (2) support and strengthen Aldabra marine research and project activities and (3) support implementation of SIF’s biosecurity plan and tourism activities on Aldabra. The MSO closely liaises with the Marine Researcher, Head of Science and Conservation, Chief Executive Officer, Consultant Director of Research and Conservation, Aldabra Science Coordinator, assistant coordinators and project staff. The main duties are listed below but are not all-encompassing, as there may be unplanned duties that are impossible to predict or describe here and may change over time.

Duties and Responsibilities

Provide administrative, logistic and technical support in ensuring that the Aldabra Reef Monitoring programme runs efficiently and produces high quality outputs

1. Assist with the marine-focused scientific and conservation projects on Aldabra;
2. Take an active and leading role in the marine team by assisting in preparing the season’s equipment, training staff to a sufficient level using existing and newly developed training materials, and participating actively in marine data collection;
3. Assist in maintaining and updating all records and data from marine monitoring (electronic and hard copies);
4. Enter collected data and check entered data;
5. Assist the MR in ensuring all marine monitoring protocols are adhered to and assist in updating these protocols annually as required;
6. Update inventory of marine research and diving equipment, check equipment and arrange equipment maintenance, signing equipment to staff in and out and sourcing equipment internationally where applicable.
7. Assist in, and when required, lead preparations of permanent transect maintenance, including recording state of permanent transect at each survey site and equipment preparation for maintenance work.
8. Assist in annotation of benthic photoquadrats of the annually conducted surveys using CPCe software (all benthic photos to be annotated by the end of March) and ensure all data is stored and backed-up appropriately;
9. When requested, prepare and annotate stereo-videos collected using SeaGIS EventMeasure software (all videos to be annotated by August following data collection) and ensure all data is stored and backed-up appropriately;
10. When requested, prepare and annotate B/RUV samples using SeaGIS EventMeasure software and ensure all data is stored and backed-up appropriately;
11. Assist in preparing an end-of-season report describing and presenting data and analysis for all aspects of the marine monitoring season (first draft by end of April);
12. Summarise details of the marine monitoring and research activities to submit to the ASC’s monthly report (by end of the first week of following month);
13. Assist in producing a comprehensive marine monitoring section of the ASC’s annual report;
14. Compile information for public dissemination such as newsletter articles, social media posts and other outreach material related to the marine programme on Aldabra and other areas as directed by the MR and SIF communications officer;
15. Represent SIF at national and international (in person and online) meetings, workshops, symposia and public fares as required;
16. Design and deliver presentations to various audiences on SIF’s research and monitoring activities;
17. When on Aldabra, participate in weekly research meetings with all research staff;
18. Attend Aldabra science meetings on request and assist in the documentation of meetings by drafting minutes as required;
19. Relieve, where necessary, the MR.

Support and strengthen Aldabra marine research and project activities

1. Assist in preparing datasets for approved (by research agreement) student projects or external collaborations;
2. When on Aldabra, assist in collecting samples for non-visiting and visiting approved researchers;
3. Provide support to the terrestrial monitoring and research programmes in busy periods and as requested by the Aldabra Science Coordinator when on Aldabra;
4. Represent SIF and SIF’s interest if requested during any scientific expeditions calling at Aldabra or support the Aldabra management team before and during such expeditions.

Support implementation of SIF’s biosecurity plan and tourism activities

1. Assist with non-research tasks as required and appropriate such as biosecurity (on Mahé, Assomption and Aldabra) and loading and unloading of supplies and equipment, biosecurity, cleaning activities, fish processing, construction of field camps (on Aldabra).
2. When visiting researchers, filming crew and tourists are on Aldabra, accompany and lead visitor groups on board, in the water or on land, provide information to tourists and crew and ensure all visitors adhere to the SIF tourism regulations;
3. Due to the nature of the work on Aldabra carry out other work-related duties as required.

Qualifications

• Minimum BSc, preferably MSc, or equivalent in Marine Biology, Environmental Sciences or related field (essential)
• Minimum dive qualification of PADI Advanced Open Water (or equivalent) and comfortable to dive in challenging dive conditions and doing underwater work (surveys and transect maintenance; essential)

Professional Experience:

• Minimum one year of experience in marine monitoring, research and/or conservation programmes, preferably in the tropics and around small islands (essential)

• Experience in underwater surveys using scuba (e.g., benthic and fish surveys) (essential)
• Experience in environmental data collection, fieldwork, and small dataset management for ecological monitoring (essential)
• Experience in writing documents in English to a range of audiences, ideally including technical reports and social media posts (essential)
• Experience of conservation/environmental management in Seychelles or Indian Ocean (preferred)

Skills and characteristics:

• Minimum basic species identification skills (coral, fish, invertebrates) of the Seychelles/WIO region (essential)
• Computer literacy (e.g., Microsoft Word, Excel, Powerpoint) (essential) and good understanding of use of GPS and GIS software (preferred)
• Ability to pay close attention to detail and be meticulous with data and follow-ups (essential)
• Excellent understanding of global, regional and national marine conservation issues (essential)
• Capability to perform physically demanding tasks and work in remote, challenging environments (essential)
• Experience with B/RUV surveys (preferred)
• Experience in using in-situ data loggers and data probes (preferred)
• Experience in basic data analysis (preferred)
• Experience with photo/video annotation methods (e.g., CPCe software, SeaGIS EventMeasure) (preferred)
• Professionalism, competence and integrity
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills
• Honesty, problem-solving and resourceful attitude and a sound work ethic
• Passion for ecosystem conservation and marine field work
• Strong motivation to learn new skills and gain knowledge
• Ability to work effectively as part of a diverse team
• Proven adaptiveness, resourcefulness and positivity
• Ability to handle unexpected duties and changing conditions
• Committed to conservation and diligently working towards achieving results for a sustainable future for Aldabra

Languages: Fluency in English speaking and writing (essential), Creole (preferable), French (asset).

Apply now with an application form (which can be downloaded from our website, or collected at Mont Fleuri or Vallée de Mai Visitor Centre), your C.V. & a cover letter sent to recruitment@sif.sc. Kindly note deadline for application is Monday 25th August 2025.