Data Scientist, SAEON
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Pretoria, South Africa· 29 days agoAbout us
The National Research Foundation (NRF) supports and promotes research and human capital development through funding, the provision of National Research Facilities and science outreach platforms and programmes to the broader community in all fields of science and technology, including natural sciences, engineering, social sciences and humanities.
The South African Environmental Observation Network (SAEON) is a research platform funded by the Department of Science Technology and Innovation (DSTI) and managed by the National Research Foundation (NRF) since 2002. SAEON is mandated to observe and research ecosystems on land, in coastal regions and the oceans to understand how those systems function and might change over time and space
when influenced by socio-economic driving forces including climate change. We deliver our data online and offer tools, services and advice for informed environmental policy-making. uLwazi (meaning knowledge Node is one of the seven nodes of the South African Environmental Observation Network (SAEON). The
Node was established in 2018 to support data management and the development of information platforms and decision-support tools for government departments.
Purpose:
The incumbent will be expected to be able to work with multiple types of scientific datasets, analyse data and create new algorithms based on sound scientific reasoning, have some background in statistics, Computer Science, Engineering, Mathematics or Environmental Science and be competent in the use of coding in one or more mainstream development languages for the purposes of analysis, application development, machine learning and general purpose modelling.
The National Research Foundation (NRF) supports and promotes research and human capital development through funding, the provision of National Research Facilities and science outreach platforms and programmes to the broader community in all fields of science and technology, including natural sciences, engineering, social sciences and humanities.
The South African Environmental Observation Network (SAEON) is a research platform funded by the Department of Science Technology and Innovation (DSTI) and managed by the National Research Foundation (NRF) since 2002. SAEON is mandated to observe and research ecosystems on land, in coastal regions and the oceans to understand how those systems function and might change over time and space
when influenced by socio-economic driving forces including climate change. We deliver our data online and offer tools, services and advice for informed environmental policy-making. uLwazi (meaning knowledge Node is one of the seven nodes of the South African Environmental Observation Network (SAEON). The
Node was established in 2018 to support data management and the development of information platforms and decision-support tools for government departments.
Purpose:
The incumbent will be expected to be able to work with multiple types of scientific datasets, analyse data and create new algorithms based on sound scientific reasoning, have some background in statistics, Computer Science, Engineering, Mathematics or Environmental Science and be competent in the use of coding in one or more mainstream development languages for the purposes of analysis, application development, machine learning and general purpose modelling.
- This is a re-advertisement; therefore, candidates who applied previously should not re-apply.
Key Responsibilities:
- Creation, validation and sourcing of data products from both geographic and non-geographic data that supports the objectives of the respective projects that the incumbent has been assigned to.
- The development of data pipelines through processing algorithms
- Creation, testing, and deployment of user end tools to search for and access data and other standalone user interfaces.
- Co-development of a multi-criteria decision analysis platforms using a combination of data types and mainstream libraries for decision support.
- Build production-quality data pipelines to add value to data streams and deploy these in standardised data services.
- Technical leadership in medium to large scale data science projects.
- Co-development of project proposals.
- Create training manuals and reports for any products developed.
- Science engagement, Stakeholder engagement and Co-author scientific presentations.
- Contribute to the SAEON uLwazi node publication and conference presentation effort.
- Engagement with internal and external staff to ensure delivery
Key Requirements
Qualification:
Qualification:
- NQF 9 - Masters in Computer science, Mathematics, Physics, Statistics, Informatics or Engineering
- PhD (NQF 10) will be advantageous
Experience:
- 5 years of relevant post-qualification work experience in coding, geospatial data analysis and classification techniques
Knowledge:
- Familiarity with spatial and multidimensional data technologies, data, and services, including management skills;
- Experience in relational databases, machine learning, statistics, and programming
- Some background in supervised and unsupervised classification techniques
- Proficiency in one or more programming languages.
Skills
- Data visualisation
- Communication skills
- Project management
- Data warehousing
- Data processing
- Machine learning concepts
- Algorithms for developing models.
Additional Notes:
- The position can be based at the SAEON National Office (Pretoria) or uLwazi Node (Cape Town), reporting to the Data Science Team Lead who is based at the National Office.
- People with disabilities are encouraged to apply.
Information:
The website www.nrf.ac.za provides more details on the NRF initiatives and activities.
Applications:
Applicants should submit a comprehensive CV by logging in to https://ess.nrf.ac.za/Account/Recruitment and apply online. Applications should be accompanied by a letter of motivation indicating the applicant suitability for the position. The names and contact details of at least three referees should be provided.
Closing Date: 23 September 2025
- The NRF offers a challenging career and competitive remuneration package which is commensurate with qualifications and experience.
- The NRF is committed to employment equity and redress and the appointment to the position will be made in line with the NRF Employment Equity Plan.
- The NRF reserves the right not to make an appointment.
- Correspondence will be sent to short-listed candidates only
- Company
- South African Environmental Observation Network
- Employment Type
- Full-time
- Experience
- More than 5 years
- Location
- South Africa, Pretoria