Job Board

Job Description

The Department of Earth, Ocean, and Atmospheric Sciences (EOAS; www.eoas.ubc.ca) in the Faculty of Science at the University of British Columbia (UBC) seeks candidates for a Geoscientist, Assistant Professor, Tenure-Track with an expected start date of July 2025 or as soon as possible thereafter, and a salary within the range of $130,000-$140,000 per annum.

We seek an innovative geoscientist who evaluates geological processes responsible for the formation, preservation, and physicochemical characteristics of mineral deposits, with a specific focus on critical minerals. The successful candidate will develop and integrate state-of-the-art concepts with field-based data, utilising expertise in some combination of mineralogy, petrology, geochemistry, geochronology, mineral system science, geomechanics, and orebody knowledge. The successful candidate will have a Ph.D. in geology, a related earth science discipline, or engineering at the time of appointment, and will have made, or show promise of making, impactful contributions to our knowledge of mineral deposits, with special application to the discovery and/or development of critical mineral resources.

Candidates should possess a strong record of research productivity, commensurate with their career path and experience, and be able to communicate a clear forward-looking vision for both fundamental science discoveries and societally relevant advancements in this area. The candidate will be expected to develop a robust externally funded and internationally recognized research program, successfully supervise graduate students and postdoctoral fellows, effectively teach undergraduate and graduate courses in geology or related disciplines, and contribute to department service. They will have a strong commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion, to create a welcoming community for all, particularly those who are historically, persistently or systemically marginalized. Evidence of, or potential for, successful teaching and an interest in innovative teaching methods is welcomed. Evidence of past, and/or a commitment to future, engagement with government, industry, and Indigenous Peoples in research related to critical minerals would be considered advantageous.

Tier 2 Chairs are five-year positions, renewable once, and are intended for exceptional emerging scholars (i.e., candidates must have been an active researcher in their field for fewer than 10 years at the time of nomination). Applicants who are more than 10 years from having earned their highest degree (and where career breaks exist, such as maternity or extended sick leave, clinical training, etc.) may have their eligibility for a Tier 2 Chair assessed through the program’s Tier 2 justification process. All CRC nominations are subject to review and final approval by the CRC Secretariat, and appointment as a CRC is conditional upon their approval.

Further information on this process can be found here https://www.chairs-chaires.gc.ca/program-programme/nomination-mise_en_candidature-eng.aspx#s3. UBC recognizes the legitimate impact that COVID-related research interruptions and eligible leaves (e.g., maternity, parental, medical, bereavement) can have on a candidate’s record of achievement. These leaves will be taken into careful consideration during the assessment process.

EOAS is a dynamic, inter-disciplinary Earth Sciences department, with research and teaching interests spanning the history of Earth and its functioning from the core to the stratosphere. EOAS houses state-of-the-art laboratories and analytical instrumentation at the Microbeam and X-ray Diffraction Facility, the Pacific Centre for Isotopic and Geochemical Research (PCIGR), and the Geomechanics and Environmental Interfaces Laboratories. The position will build on EOAS’s internationally recognized strength in solid Earth research. Collaborative inter-disciplinary research within EOAS including geology, geological engineering, hydrogeology, geophysics, and environmental science would be considered advantageous. The successful candidate will have the opportunity to collaborate with the EOAS-hosted Mineral Deposit Research Unit and, therefore, to foster strong partnerships with mineral industry research partners and enable applications for Canada’s world-leading NSERC Alliance and MITACS co-funding programs. UBC’s location in western Canada affords direct access to the North American Cordillera, a superb natural laboratory for the scientific investigation of the formation of critical mineral deposits, developing pathways for responsible and sustainable extraction, and building relationships with Indigenous Peoples.

UBC’s campuses are located on the traditional, ancestral, and unceded territories of the Syilx (Okanagan) Peoples and of the Coast Salish Peoples, including the territories of the xwməθkwəy̓əm (Musqueam), Skwxwú7mesh (Squamish), and Stó:lō and Səl􀹂ílwətaʔ/Selilwitulh (Tsleil Waututh) Nations.