QSET Rover - Science Manager

Description

The Queen's Space Engineering Team (QSET) is a large multi-disciplinary team consisting of students from all engineering disciplines, in addition to the Faculty of Arts and Science. QSET designs a prototype Mars Rover for participation in the University Rover Challenge (for more information please visit urc.marssociety.org/home).

If selected as the Science Manager, you will oversee the design of all experiments comprising the Rover’s on-board scientific payload and suite of environmental sensors. The Science Manager will oversee a team of 10 - 30+ students who will design an apparatus that conducts in-situ experiments to determine the presence of extinct, extant, or no life in the competition environment. The successful applicant will also lead research efforts into geological and chemical methods of classifying life on other planets. They will work closely with the other technical managers and the Rover CTO to ensure design compatibility between subsystems and support other sub-teams in their design endeavors where required. The incoming Science Manager can structure their team as they see fit and are encouraged to assign strong team members as project-team leads to increase accountability. Doing so is especially useful in the Science team, which naturally subdivides into five distinct areas (wet chemical, spectroscopy, mechanical, geological, and sensors). The Science Manager is responsible for overseeing the safety of their team and their equipment in both design bay and lab settings.

The Queen’s Space Engineering Team encourages applications from women, visible minorities, Indigenous peoples, Persons with disabilities, and members of the LGBTQ2S+ community. If you require accommodations during the interview process, please contact qset @engsoc.queensu.ca.

APPLY BY: March 28, 2025 at 10:00 pm EST

Responsibilities

• Lead the technical development for the on-board scientific payload.
• Lead initial planning and preparation efforts over the summer to create project timelines, sub-team budgets, training material, and team resources for the mechanical sub-team.
• Coordinate testing activities in a lab environment, including facilitating training, and overseeing members as they conduct the experiments.
• Contribute to scientific payload-specific sections of the SAR Video, SAR Report, and URC Science Plan.
• Attend all relevant executive team, rover executive team, and sub team meetings.
• Work with the captain, CTO, and supervisors to define specific roles and responsibilities of the supervisors.
• Prepare training material as necessary to help support member onboarding and development.
• Organize and chair weekly sub-team meetings and or attend sub-team meetings chaired by supervisors.

Requirements

• Excellent team management and interpersonal skills.
• Effective oral and written communication. In particular, presentation skills and technical/academic writing experience are necessary.
• Significant experience with designing experiments/experimental procedures and or significant knowledge of geology.
• Passion for engineering design and scientific exploration.
• Basic working knowledge of geology, chemistry, mechanical design, spectroscopy, and or environmental sensors is an asset.