Senior/Principal Consultant (Geochemistry)

Location

Didcot, Oxfordshire | United Kingdom

Job description

Your Impact:

At Jacobs, we’ll inspire and empower you to deliver your best work so you can evolve, grow and succeed – today and into tomorrow.  With more than 55,000 people in 40+ countries, working at Jacobs offers an exciting range of opportunities to develop your career within a supportive and diverse team who always strive to do the right thing for our people, clients and communities.

People are Jacobs’ greatest asset, and we offer a competitive package to retain and attract the best talent. 
In addition to the benefits you’d expect, UK employees also receive free single medical cover and digital GP service, family-friendly benefits such as enhanced parental leave pay and free membership of employee assistance and parental programmes, plus reimbursement towards relevant professional development and memberships. We also give back to our communities through our Collectively program which incorporates matched-funding, paid volunteering time and charitable donations.

Work-life balance and flexibility is a key focus area for Jacobs. We’re happy to discuss hybrid, part-time and flexible working hours, patterns and locations to suit you and our business.

About the Opportunity 

Jacobs is currently recruiting for a Senior or a Principal Consultant with experience in the area of Geochemistry and Geochemical Modelling to join our Radioactive Waste Management and Disposal business. The role can be based at Harwell, London, Birchwood or other locations will be considered. The successful applicant will be part of a multi-disciplinary team (including chemists, physicists, geologists, engineers, safety case specialists and mathematicians) who provide consultancy, modelling, safety case and laboratory studies to underpin the science, technology and engineering to allow the safe disposal of radioactive waste. 

The successful candidate will provide technical leadership across a portfolio of projects within the area of Radioactive Waste Management, centred on geochemistry and geochemical modelling for geological disposal. You will manage and support both large and small consultancy projects and proposals, many of which are multi-disciplinary. You will have the opportunity to lead and support client relationships and projects, prepare proposals, liaise with clients, manage projects and subcontractors, provide advice and deliver technical reports in line with client and regulatory requirements. For candidates without nuclear industry experience Jacobs has established a New to Nuclear Training Programme.

Key Responsibilities: 
You will support senior managers and provide technical leadership on a range of consultancy projects for customers , including radioactive waste management organisations, radioactive waste producers and regulators, both in the UK and overseas. Your work will focus on the geochemistry and geochemical modelling associated with the disposal of radioactive wastes, including their chemical interactions with groundwater, backfills, encapsulants and other components.

The responsibilities include

• Developing conceptual models for the representation of chemical processes in performance assessment models that support safety cases
• Developing models to aid the understanding of waste reactions with engineered materials, groundwaters and geological materials
• Providing geochemical and chemical input to a range of modelling studies led by the wider modelling team
• Working with experimentalists to aid the design of programmes and to analyse and interpret results from studies on contaminant chemistry and transport
• Delivering high-quality and bespoke technical and strategic support to our clients
• Developing an understanding of the underlying requirements of our customers, and how we can meet those requirements
• Mentoring and developing our graduates and other junior staff
• Supporting other team members with business development activities
• Supporting the continued development of our business, including through identifying, bidding for and winning new work, either with new or existing clients
• Continuing to build and develop excellent client relationships

Here’s What You’ll Need:

• Degree qualification (or equivalent training and experience) in a chemistry or geochemistry discipline
• A good understanding of geochemistry, geology, and mineralogy
• Experience in the development and application of chemical models, including hydrogeochemical and reactive transport modelling
• Experience in one of the following areas
  o    The development of chemical models for the prediction of interactions of contaminants with groundwater, engineered barriers and geological materials
  o    Understanding of the chemical behaviour of radioelements and non-radiological contaminants under disposal conditions 
  o    Working with PHREEQC or similar tools for geochemical modelling
  o    A track record of problem solving in the field of geochemistry
  o    Analysis of large geochemical datasets
  o    Performing laboratory experiments studying sorption, solubility and diffusion of contaminants, under conditions relevant to safety assessment for waste disposal facilities
  o    Working on problems relevant to the management and disposal of radioactive waste
• Experience of leadership or people management 
• Demonstrable ability to write clearly and present complex arguments in a well-structured manner
• Adaptable and able to work on a variety of projects, prioritising as appropriate.
• Able to work in multi-disciplinary teams

The following are not essential, but we welcome applications from candidates who have:

•    An MSc or PhD involving significant aspects of environmental geochemistry and/or hydrogeochemistry
•    Understanding of the nuclear industry

Our Culture

Our values stand on a foundation of safety, integrity, inclusion and diversity. We put people at the heart of our business and we truly believe that by supporting one another through our culture of caring, we all succeed. We value positive mental health and a sense of belonging for all employees  Find out more about life at Jacobs.

.We aim to embed inclusion and diversity in everything we do. We know that if we are inclusive, we’re more connected, and if we are diverse, we’re more creative. We accept people for who they are, regardless of age, disability, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, mental health, race, faith or belief, sexual orientation, socioeconomic background, and whether you’re pregnant or on family leave. This is reflected in our wide range of Global Employee Networks centred on inclusion and diversity – ACE, Careers, Enlace, Harambee, OneWorld, Prism, Vetnet, and Women’s – find out more about our employee networks here.

Jacobs partners with VERCIDA to help us attract and retain diverse talent.  For greater online accessibility please visit to view and access our roles. As a Disability Confident employer, we will interview all disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for a vacancy. We welcome applications from candidates who are seeking flexible working and from those who may not meet all the listed requirements for a role
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