Qualification for weather

mrhappy42

Always wanted to work for the weather service...what qualifications do you need? Just curious incase one knows this.

Dappergent one of the mods here will be able to answer this in detail.
/me drags him out of the corner where he has been standing since the summer went to pot last june sometime...

DapperGent

mrhappy42 wrote:

Always wanted to work for the weather service...what qualifications do you need? Just curious incase one knows this.

It really depends on what you want to do. If you just simply want to work for a national weather service then most of the entry level position would be done on the same lines as a civil service placement. As always there would be a slant towards the nature of the civil service position you're seeking so a scientific bankground would be a definate plus.

In Ireland a good civil service position can be secured off the back of a reasonably good Leaving Cert but it would be unlikely that that would be enough given the type of candidate you'd be up against for entry level positions to a national weather service. It could be, if you have a good breath of personal knowledge on Meteorology and can demonstrate background and interest but it's unlikely. You're really looking at some kind of higher qualification in general science or maths or IT to be in with a shout.

If you're shooting a bit higher and are interested in a job as a Meteorologist or a forecaster (rather than a general weather service job) then you're really looking at a good honours degree in Maths or Physics (2.1+) for starters. There is nowhere in Ireland to study meteorology as a primary degree the closest place is Reading in the UK which has an excellent reputation and does it's degrees in conjunction with the british Met Office. At the same time a lot of a Meteorology degree will revolve around Maths and Physics as weather is interpreted and predicted through mathematical and physical rules and models. There is a masters degree in Meteorology starting for the first time in UCD this year which looks like it should be good, again good Maths/Physics is a basic entry requirement.

I think that's about it.

As a final word I would say that you should remember that working for a weather service is:

a) Bloody hard to get into - usually a quite small number of places advertised every few years.

b) At the end of the day just a job like any other.

mike65

I think what you really need is a fogged up crystal ball and the ability to smile when telling of continuous heavy rain and gale force winds.

Mike.

Tommy Vercetti

There are other opportunities such as in IT and so on, but the entry level grade is Meteorological Officer which is the equivalent of an Executive Officer in the Civil Service, the Leaving is the minimum requirement but it would have to be a good one, as stated above. There will probably be quite a few vacancies arising in Met Eireann over the next 2-3 years because there are a lot of people reaching retirement age who were recruited back in the 60's when the service was expanding. Keep an eye on www.publicjobs.ie

Lafortezza

DapperGent wrote:

As a final word I would say that you should remember that working for a weather service is:
a) Bloody hard to get into - usually a quite small number of places advertised every few years.
b) At the end of the day just a job like any other.

c) a ****ing savage job!

DapperGent

lafortezza wrote:

c) a ****ing savage job!

This fresh faced enthusiasm makes me feel like a bitter old hack.

I was young and foolish, I thought those days would last forever.

mrhappy42

Electronics background...so lots of maths...just cant remember any of it :-) ...any night time stuff through the Open University?

Thanks for all the replies so far...Diff, Grad and Curl here I come.

PhoenixRising

Met Eireann's website recommends a first or a good second class honours degree in either Meteorology, Physics, Mathematical Physics or Maths. Here

It would definitely be an interesting career. I wonder would they accept a degree in Mechanical Engineering for entry?