Experimental Ecotoxicologist

Salary - £40,574 - £43,056 Depending on experience
Full-time, on-site
Location: Wallingford
Role: 12-month Maternity cover
Closing date: Monday 16 November 2026
We reserve the right to close this advert early if we find the right candidate, so we encourage you to apply early.

We are seeking a motivated and detail-oriented Ecotoxicologist to join our world-leading Environmental Pollution team on a 1-year maternity cover contract. The successful candidate will have strong practical ecotoxicology laboratory skills, experience in the culture and maintenance of organisms, and a keen interest in environmental science.

In this role, you will support aquatic bioassays and ecotoxicology studies investigating the impacts of PFAS and other environmental pollutants on organisms. Working alongside technical specialists, scientists and project managers, you will contribute to the successful delivery of research projects, applying a critical approach to laboratory work, troubleshooting challenges, and helping to refine and improve methodologies.

You will be responsible for managing your workload effectively, collaborating with colleagues and project partners, and contributing to the communication of UKCEH's research both internally and externally.

This is an excellent opportunity to develop your skills and gain experience across a diverse range of environmental research projects, working within a collaborative team that delivers science with real-world impact.

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead the delivery of aquatic ecotoxicity experiments investigating PFAS toxicity, with particular focus on conducting toxicity assays on Daphnia, alongside other freshwater organisms such as Lumbriculus.
• Support other ecotoxicity and bioaccumulation studies, including laboratory and mesocosm PFAS exposure experiments with aquatic and terrestrial organisms.
• Prepare environmental and biological samples generated through PFAS exposure experiments for chemical analysis, and support sample preparation for complementary molecular and mechanistic studies.
• Contribute to the delivery of projects through effective written and oral communication of experimental outputs, while supporting project managers with the coordination of tasks and competing deadlines.
• Contribute as an active team member in the coordination and delivery of projects, primarily in the theme of aquatic ecotoxicology and PFAS, for research funders and commercial customers.

We're Looking for Someone Who:

• Maintains high standards of laboratory organisation, culture maintenance and data recording, ensuring experimental activities are documented and communicated effectively to project leads and project teams.
• Provides regular updates on progress, results and any emerging issues to project leads.
• Presents progress updates within group or project meetings, as well as external meetings and conferences, as required.
• Participates in organisation-wide forums/schemes, as required.

Key Behaviours

Key behaviours are linked to the UKCEH behavioural framework and include; Excellence - Delivering world class science supporting global environmental challenges; valued by stakeholders, and meeting funder requirements, Integrity - Maintaining the highest standards of research and professional ethics and impartiality & Teamwork - Working together effectively with colleagues, partners and customers to achieve long-term success.

Essential skills:

• PhD level qualification
• Experience designing, maintaining and conducting aquatic toxicity assays and analysing toxicity data using appropriate statistical approaches and software.
• Experience working independently as well as part of a team.
• A critical and meticulous approach to your work.
• Excellent time management skills.
• Excellent communication skills, including presenting updates on experiments and data interpretation to project lead/teams.

Desirable skills:

• Hands- on experience culturing and conducting assays with and .
• Knowledge of PFAS.
• A full UK driving licence would be advantageous, as occasional fieldwork may be required.