Scientist (Exposure)

Contract

This is a P-2 contract. This kind of contract is known as Professional and Director staff. It is normally internationally recruited only. It's a staff contract. It usually requires 2 years of experience, depending on education.

Salary

The salary for this job should be between 57,661 USD and 78,318 USD.

Please keep in mind that the salary displayed here is an estimation by UN Talent based on the location and the type of contract. It may vary depending on the organization. The recruiter should be able to inform you about the exact salary range. In case the job description contains another salary information, please refer to this one.

PURPOSE OF POSITION

The International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC), is the cancer agency of the World Health Organization (WHO) and is based in Lyon, France.

The Evidence Synthesis and Classification Branch (ESC) produces the WHO Classification of Tumours, the IARC Monographs on the Identification of Carcinogenic Hazards to Humans, and the IARC Handbooks of Cancer Prevention. For each volume, IARC convenes international, interdisciplinary Working Groups of expert scientists to systematically review the pertinent scientific literature and to develop consensus evaluations and classifications. IARC selects these experts based on their knowledge and experience and the absence of real or apparent conflicting interests.

This position is critical to the function of the IARC Monographs Programme and has recently gained increased prominence with the amendment of the Monographs’ Preamble, in the specialty of Exposure Assessment.

Under the direct supervision of head of Deputy head ESC branch and overall guidance of ESC branch head, the incumbent is responsible for:

• Preparing the upcoming Monographs meetings (vols. 133-135), which will be occurring over the next 15 months, and in particular.
• Serving as Responsible Officer for meeting 135 which is scheduled to take place in October 2023. Participating in a Scientific Workshop on evaluating the impact of biases in cancer epidemiology studies, to be held in October 2022.
• Serving as rapporteur in the Exposure Characterization Subgroup for all Monographs meetings scheduled to take place between March 2023 and October 2024.

DESCRIPTION OF DUTIES

1. Before the Monographs meeting, assist in identifying key studies and experts to be considered for the meeting. Help to organize the work of the experts in pre-meeting preparations.
2. At the Monographs meeting, serve as rapporteur or co-rapporteur for the Exposure Characterization subgroup. This involves acting in the best interests of the programme while (a) working with the subgroup chair, subgroup members, and IARC staff to ensure tasks are completed on time; (b) recording text changes and verifying that revised drafts reflect these changes; (c) ensuring that the work produced by the subgroup conforms to standards; and (d) coordinating with the other rapporteurs to ensure that satisfactory progress is being made throughout the meeting. The incumbent also contributes to the preparation of manuscripts for scientific publications related to the programmes.
3. Before and as needed after the Monographs meeting, review the text and tables to ensure scientific accuracy, coherence of text, tables and summaries, and overall scientific clarity. This involves scientific quality assurance review of the final text from the Working Group against the scientific literature, making corrections as necessary, and responding to queries from the editor.
4. Respond to external inquiries about specific Monographs or about the overall programme. This may involve giving presentations in English at national or international conferences about the findings of the Monographs meetings.
5. When serving as Responsible Officer, coordinate the preparation of a monograph and its associated meeting, including identifying the agent and experts, developing the outline and writing assignments for the monograph, coordinating the work of other team members, drafting the meeting summary, and overseeing quality control review of the monograph after the meeting.
6. Actively participate in IARC scientific meetings related to the programme.
7. Contribute to writing grants with a view to attracting research funding from competitive sources.

COVID-19 MEASURES

Due to the evolving situation resulting from the Covid-19 pandemic, and depending on work requirements, this position may be partly occupied remotely, from the home of the candidate selected in the region Lyon, according to the teleworking clause for force majeure currently in force as part of the IARC teleworking policy during this pandemic period.

WHO COMPETENCIES

• Technical expertise
• Teamwork
• Respecting and promoting cultural differences
• Communication
• Producing results

FUNCTIONAL SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE

• Knowledge of the scientific disciplines involved in exposure characterization for cancer hazard identification: excellent knowledge of exposure assessment, with a working knowledge of epidemiology, toxicology and carcinogen mechanisms.
• Familiarity with the principles and execution of systematic review.
• Ability to facilitate discussions and guide committees to produce scientific reports; to review manuscripts and tables for accuracy, and to integrate scientific information across multiple disciplines.
• Familiarity with preparation of grant applications.
• Proven scientific versatility and flexibility.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

EDUCATION

Essential: PhD degree in industrial hygiene, exposure assessment, biology, chemistry, or closely related field.

Desirable: -

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Essential:

• At least two years of pre- or post-doctoral experience in conducting both quantitative and qualitative assessments of one or both of the following:
  1. 1. Exposure assessment in studies of human cancer, and/or
  2. Exposure assessment in studies of biomarkers as pre-cancerous endpoints (i.e., the key characteristics of carcinogens;

See https://monographs.iarc.fr/wp-content/uploads/2019/07/Preamble-2019.pdf), related to occupational, environmental, dietary, and/or everyday-life exposures.

• Experience collecting or reviewing exposure data across a wide spectrum of carcinogenic hazards including chemicals, complex mixtures, occupational exposures, physical agents including radiation, biological agents, and other factors.
• Scientific publication record in the field of exposure assessment commensurate with the grade of the position.
• Experience in guiding scientific committees, either as chair or rapporteur.
• Experience in applying systematic review methodologies.

Desirable:

• Experience working in a multi-disciplinary team.
• Experience working in a diverse, multi-cultural environment.
• Experience working in an international organization.

USE OF LANGUAGE SKILLS

Expert knowledge of English is required; Basic knowledge of French or another UN language is desirable.

OTHER SKILLS (e.g. IT)

• Knowledge of MS Office (Word, Excel. PowerPoint, Access).
• Familiarity with Internet tools for file-sharing and bibliographic software (e.g. EndNote, advanced features of PubMed)

REMUNERATION

WHO salaries for staff in the Professional category are calculated in US dollars. The remuneration for the above position comprises an annual base salary starting at USD 49,254 (subject to mandatory deductions for pension contributions and health insurance, as applicable), a variable post adjustment, which reflects the cost of living in a particular duty station, and currently amounts to USD 1,309 per month for the duty station indicated above (subject to change). Other benefits include 30 days of annual leave, allowances for dependent family members, home leave, and an education grant for dependent children.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

• Only candidates under serious consideration will be contacted.
• A written test and/or seminar presentation may be used as a form of screening.
• In the event that your candidature is retained for an interview, you will be required to provide, in advance, a scanned copy of the degree(s)/diploma(s)/certificate(s) required for this position. IARC/WHO only considers higher educational qualifications obtained from an institution accredited/recognized in the World Higher Education Database (WHED), a list updated by the International Association of Universities (IAU)/United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). The list can be accessed through the link: http://www.whed.net/. Some professional certificates may not appear in the WHED and will require individual review.
• Any appointment/extension of appointment is subject to IARC/WHO Staff Regulations, Staff Rules and Manual.
• WHO staff members in other duty stations are encouraged to apply.
• For information on IARC’S operations please visit: www.iarc.fr
• IARC/WHO is committed to workforce diversity.
• IARC/WHO's workforce adheres to the WHO Values Charter and is committed to put the WHO Values into practice.
• IARC/WHO has a smoke-free environment and does not recruit smokers or users of any form of tobacco.
• Applications from women and from nationals of non and underrepresented Participating States are particularly encourage.