The Department of Agriculture is recruiting to fill 200 positions in 2016 across a range of areas within the Department. They will be at the Irish Farmers Journal and open eir Agri Careers Fair (which takes place in the RDS on 3 March. Register for here for free here if you wish to attend).

Since 2007, the Department has lost almost 1,500 people but now that the recruitment embargo has been lifted,it is hiring again and is seeking to fill 200 positions this year alone.

These job opportunities will span a range of disciplines, and should appeal to a wide range of people – from new graduates to more experienced professionals, and include technical officer roles, agricultural inspector roles, administrative posts, food and microbiology laboratory scientists, marine engineers, vets, molecular biologists and ICT roles including applications development, GIS specialists and IT infrastructure development experts.

The Department of Agriculture’s assistant secretary Ann Derwin said the Department offers opportunities which allow people to make “a real difference”.

She said the possibilities include influencing policy in a range of areas such as food safety, animal health, environmental sustainability, food security, forestry and the marine sectors, contributing to shaping the next Rural Development Plan for Ireland or negotiating the next CAP.

The Department also facilitates continuous professional development and representing Ireland at both national and international level.

Requirements

A competition for technical Agricultural Officers will begin soon. The educational requirements are five subjects in the Leaving Cert and an Advanced Level 6 diploma. There will also be jobs coming up for marine engineers, vets and lab staff in the areas of bioscience, biomedical lab science and molecular science. Various administrative and ICT posts will also be advertised.

Many jobs with the Department involve field work and visiting farms and food businesses throughout the country. It has over 3,000 staff working in locations all around the country from Clonakilty to Raphoe, Galway to Dublin, Sligo to Wexford. Department staff also work in cities such as Beijing, Brussels, Geneva, London, Moscow, Paris, Rome, and Washington.

Find out more

Register with the Public Appointments Service (PAS) for notifications about upcoming jobs in the department and the wider civil service – www.publicjobs.ie. The Department also publishes information in relation to all upcoming competitions on its website here.

Read more

Meet the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine and many more at the inaugural Agri Careers Fair brought to you by the Irish Farmers Journal and open eir. The event takes place in the RDS on 3 March and if you wish to attend, register here.