Employment & Opportunities

CRC Tier II in Critical Mineral SYSTEMS - Lakehead University

Lakehead University invites applications for a Tier 2 Canada Research Chair in the area of Critical Mineral Systems (as defined by NRCan). This tenure-track appointment will be at the rank of Assistant or Associate Professor. This CRC position is for five (5) years and is renewable once. Tier 2 Canada Research Chairs are intended for outstanding and innovative emerging researchers whose accomplishments have made a major impact in their fields and are recognized as leaders in their fields.

By combining discovery and translational research, the Chair will increase the research capacity and training opportunities at Lakehead University. The Chair will add to the continuing development of research excellence in the area of Critical Minerals within the
University.

*To ensure equitable distribution of CRC positions for equity-deserving groups, hiring will be restricted to qualified women and gender minority scholars who self-identify as such through the application process. This initiative is a special program under the Ontario Human Rights Code.

Requirements
Tier 2 CRCs are for exceptional emerging researchers, acknowledged by their peers as having the potential to lead in their field. Candidates for Tier 2 Chair positions must meet all the requirements for Tier 2 CRCs, and be eligible for assistant or associate professor positions. Tier 2 CRC’s normally are not more than 10 years from their highest degree at the time of submitting the nomination to the CRC secretariat. However, nominating institutions may nominate a professor or a researcher who is more than 10 years from their highest degree at the time of nomination and has experienced career interruptions based on the categories outlined here.

Successful candidates will:

• be excellent emerging world-class researchers who have demonstrated research creativity;
• have demonstrated the potential to achieve international recognition in their fields in the next five to ten years;
• as chairholders, have the potential to attract, develop and retain excellent trainers, students and future researchers; and
• be proposing an original, innovative research program of the highest quality.

CRCs at Lakehead University are appointed and governed by the provisions of the Lakehead University Faculty Association Collective Agreement. For the duration of the CRC, the CRC will be given a reduced teaching load in order to dedicate the majority of their time to research, be provided with a start-up grant, an annual research grant, and research space appropriate for the proposed CRC’s program of research.

Application Deadline and Process

The Department of Geology will begin the review of applications on June 30, 2023 and the
position will remain open until filled.

A complete application as one electronic pdf file consists of:

• Letter of application (1 page) that includes your interest in the position; what you would bring to the department and faculty; the impact that your research will have on the field of critical mineral systems (your research statement can elaborate on this); and what makes you a strong candidate overall as a researcher, educator, and community member;
• A detailed curriculum vitae (CV) (any format) that provides a clear sense of your scholarly and professional development via your education and your research activities and outcomes; your contributions to making critical mineral systems a more equitable and inclusive discipline through committee work, community engagement, social media, and advocacy.;
• Research Statement (up to 6 pages) that describes your proposed CRC program of research using CRC section headings (page limitation excludes the summary and list of references) (see link provided (under the Nomination heading) for further instructions on requirements for each section and link for Lakehead University’s Strategic Research Plan);
• Teaching statement (up to 2 pages) and a dossier of syllabi and other evidence, if available. These must demonstrate how you engage, encourage, and develop the learning capacity of students entering higher education from a diverse array of backgrounds, and how you embed practices and principles of equity, diversity and inclusion in your classroom, your assignments, and your classroom style;
• EDI statement (1 page) that includes your record of attracting and mentoring a diverse group of students, trainees, and research personnel, and establishing an equitable and inclusive research environment. This should include a plan for establishing and maintaining a diverse core team (at the student, trainee, personnel and early-career researcher levels), and an environment that is safe and inclusive and allows all team members to reach their full research potential (e.g., through the recruitment and outreach strategy, equitable training opportunities, and professional development and mentoring); and
• The names and contact information for three references, one of whom must be at arm’s length.
• A Self-Identification Survey is mandatory and must be completed by applicants. This survey can be found here.

Please note that the CRC Program imposes no restrictions on nominees with regard to nationality or country of residence; however, applicants should indicate their current citizenship status within their application.

Complete applications are to be directed via email to: Dr. Sreekumari (Sree) Kurissery, Acting Dean, Faculty of Science and Environmental Studies ( )

Please note that only those selected for an interview will be notified.

The successful candidate will be expected to work with the Office of Research Services in completing a complete nomination package due to the CRC Secretariat on October 17, 2023.

If you have questions about the CRC program at Lakehead University, please contact Anne Klymenko, Director, Research Services by email: or by telephone at 807-343-8110 Ext. 8223.

Additional Information
Additional information regarding the Canada Research Chair program can be found here.Tier 2 CRC nominees must be Assistant or Associate Professors. The Canada Research Chairs Program supports outstanding researchers in areas that will further
Lakehead's Strategic Research Plan. All Chair nominations are subject to review and final approval by the CRC Secretariat. Please consult the Canada Research Chairs website for full program information and further details on eligibility criteria. Information regarding our CRC EDI Action Plan is available here and information regarding our EDI policies can be found here.

PhD project in Earth Sciences - Université Laval

Development of in situ sulfur isotope analyses of apatite by LA-ICP-QQQ-MS to create new vectoring and fertility indicators technologies for mineral exploration.

Location: Université Laval, Québec city (Québec, Canada)
Starting date: Fall 2023 (flexible)
Funding: A scholarship of $27,500 per year for three years is available for this project.
Supervisors: Rottier Bertrand (U. Laval) & Crystal Laflamme (U. Laval)
Collaborators: Sarah Dare (Université de Québec à Chicoutimi - UQAC) & Georges Beaudoin (U. Laval)

Research project description

The sulfur isotope signature (δ34S) of apatite is a function of the source of sulfur and may be affected by the mechanisms triggering sulfide or sulfate precipitation. Therefore, monitoring the sulfur isotope composition (δ34S) of apatite through the evolution of a magmatic and/or hydrothermal system has an important potential for the development of new indicator mineral exploration tools for ore deposits. Such tools enlarge the geochemical footprint of deposits to assess the fertility of a region and can be used as vectors to mineralization. Currently, development of new exploration tools based on the sulfur isotopic signature of apatite is hampered by the high analytical costs, complexity of sample preparation, and the limited availability of analytical instruments (SIMS) able to perform in situ sulfur isotope analyses. However, in situ sulfur isotope analyses (δ34S) can also be acquired by LA-ICP-QQQ-MS and δ34S analyses in sulfides using LA-ICP-QQQ-MS have already been developed at U. Laval by the research team of Prof. Laflamme.

The first objective of the project is to develop in situ sulfur isotope measurements by LA-ICP-QQQ-MS for apatite, in two well-known research laboratories hosted at U. Laval (MicroLab) and UQAC (LabMaTer). This includes the development of suitable standards in addition to those already available and the optimization of LA-ICP-QQQ-MS analytical protocols. This new method will significantly reduce the sample preparation time and the cost of sulfur isotope analyses and thus will unlock the potential of in situ sulfur isotope measurements for novel applications.

The second objective of the project is to evaluate the capacity the sulfur isotopic signature of apatite to assess the fertility of magmatic systems associated with porphyry Cu-Au and magmatic Ni-Cu-PGE deposits and to develop new exploration vectors for VMS
deposits. This part of the study will be conducted on a series of representative samples already available at U. Laval and UQAC.

The PhD candidate will join the muldisciplinary teams (> 30 graduate students) of the Agnico Eagle-Eldorado Reserch Chair in Mineral Exploration, the Canada Research Chair in Sulfur Isotope geochemistry (U. Laval) and the Canada Research Chair in Geochemistry Applied to Ore Deposits (UQAC).

Required qualifications

• Master’s degree (MSc) in Earth sciences, geological engineering or equivalent
• Strong interest for analytical development
• Knowledge of LA-ICP-MS techniques
• Bilingualism (French, English) is an asset

Submit an application

Candidates must send their application to Professor Rottier by email ( ) before the 16th of June. The application package must include the following documents:

• Cover letter describing your experiences and research interests and if needed, explaining any special circumstances relevant to the evaluation of the application
• CV
• University transcripts (unofficial)
• Names and contact information of three references