Research Engineering/scientist Assistant

Research Engineering/Scientist Assistant

This ecology research technician position will provide support to field, lab, and greenhouse research projects undertaken by the Wolf lab at the University of Texas. This position will mainly support two projects: a study experimentally manipulating biodiversity at the Brackenridge Field Lab, and a USDA-funded project examining the role of drought in mediating nitrogen fixation rates. The technician will work closely with PI Wolf as well as postdocs and graduate students in the lab to maintain infrastructure at the BFL experiment, oversee undergraduate researchers, process greenhouse samples, conduct laboratory analyses, and provide other support to grant-funded research. The technician will spend some time on computer tasks such as data entry and data analysis with R, and may have the chance to conduct an independent project related to current lab research. We seek independent, motivated, and curious candidates who are excited about learning new skills, creatively solving problems, and addressing ecological questions.

Responsibilities

• Maintaining and collecting data from an ongoing experiment at Brackenridge Field Lab
• Data entry, processing, and analysis
• Processing plant and soil samples for lab analysis
• Support of other greenhouse, lab, and field experiments in the Wolf lab
• Lab organization and management

Required Qualifications

• BS or equivalent in ecology or related field
• Previous experience conducting biological and ecological research in greenhouse, laboratory and field settings in central Texas
• Ability to identify central Texas plant species
• Previous experience collecting and processing soil and plant samples for elemental analysis
• Attention to detail; excellent organizational and problem-solving skills
• Excellent scientific communication skills
• Must be able to work efficiently both individually and as part of a team

Salary Range

$40,000+ depending on qualifications

Working Conditions

• Uniforms and/or personal protection equipment (furnished)
• May work in all weather conditions
• May work in extreme temperatures
• May work around chemical fumes
• May work around standard office conditions
• May work around chemicals
• May work around electrical and mechanical hazards
• Repetitive use of a keyboard at a workstation
• Use of manual dexterity
• Climbing of stairs
• Climbing of ladders
• Lifting and moving

Work Shift

• 40 hours/week is required, and most of this time should be during normal business hours (e.g. 8:00am-5:00pm), although the number of hours/day and days/week may change depending on the projects being pursued.

Required Materials

• Resume/CV
• 3 work references with their contact information; at least one reference should be from a supervisor
• Letter of interest

Important for applicants who are NOT current university employees or contingent workers: You will be prompted to submit your resume the first time you apply, then you will be provided an option to upload a new Resume for subsequent applications. Any additional Required Materials (letter of interest, references, etc.) will be uploaded in the Application Questions section; you will be able to multi-select additional files. Before submitting your online job application, ensure that ALL Required Materials have been uploaded. Once your job application has been submitted, you cannot make changes.

Important for Current university employees and contingent workers: As a current university employee or contingent worker, you MUST apply within Workday by searching for Find UT Jobs. If you are a current University employee, log-in to Workday, navigate to your Worker Profile, click the Career link in the left hand navigation menu and then update the sections in your Professional Profile before you apply. This information will be pulled in to your application. The application is one page and you will be prompted to upload your resume. In addition, you must respond to the application questions presented to upload any additional Required Materials (letter of interest, references, etc.) that were noted above.