JUNIOR SPECIALIST STEP 1 POSITION DESCRIPTION
NATURE AND PURPOSE
The position of Junior Specialist provides technical or specialized expertise in the planning and execution of research projects in a Biosafety Level 1 (BSL-1) Laboratory. The Junior Specialist stays apprised of the research area and maintains technical competence in the designated area(s) of specialization. The role of this position is to provide specialized expertise in microbial food safety research projects of the laboratory of the Principal Investigator Dr. Christopher w. Simmons. The Junior Specialist is actively and significantly engaged in research involving management of agricultural soil health with emphasis on sustainable soil amendment strategies that lead to soil pest Inactivation and benefits to soil nutrient, microbiological, and structural properties. The Junior Specialist is responsible for setting up and executing experiments and conducting quality control and data management procedures. The Junior Specialist will have the opportunity to have creative input into the design of and selection of experiments to meet the study objectives. They will also assist with routine day-to-day lab duties including lab safety duties, supplies acquisition, and will lead undergraduate assistants.

MAJOR RESPONSIBILITIES
RESEARH IN SPECIALIZED AREAS (90% effort)
a. The Junior Specialist will use their academic and professional expertise to make scientific contributions to one or more research studies and will contribute to published research. Under the general direction of the Principal Investigator, the Junior Specialist will collaborate with other research personnel to as part of a project that seeks to understand the effects of organic matter amendments In soil with respect to changes to soil pests, microbial ecology, acidity, biochemical oxygen demand, and plant nutrients.
b. The Junior Specialist will process soil samples using standard methods for measuring viable nematodes, Fusarium spp. and weed propagules.
c. The Junior Specialist will work be actively engaged in field sample collection and analysis and will work with collaborators in the laboratory as well as from other departments at UC Davis.
d. The Junior Specialist will draft tables and figures for presentations, reports, and scientific publications as well as participate in drafting and revising manuscripts as needed.
e. The Junior Specialist will assist with laboratory maintenance tasks, including safety management, maintaining the chemical inventory, managing lab waste, ordering supplies and other lab maintenance tasks.
PROFESSIONAL COMPETENCE AND ACTIVITY (10% effort)
a. The Junior Specialist will participate in appropriate professional/technical educational and research organizations, such as the Western Center for Agricultural Health and Safety, or commodity board research symposia to learn more about the newest advances in soil fumigation alternatives.
b. The Junior Specialist will organize data for grant reports and publications prior to submission and offer technical and creative contributions to manuscript preparation.
c. The Junior Specialist will conduct literature searches for articles relevant to the research topic, engage in discussions of data with the Principal Investigators, and contribute to presentation of research findings and manuscript preparation.
UNIVERSITY AND PUBLIC SERVICE (0% effort)
a. The Junior Specialist is not expected to participate in university or public service.

WORK LOCATION
Fl3 RMIS3224 C4
This employee will work on the 3rd floor in RMI South, room 3224 at cubicle 4.

Basic qualifications (required at time of application)

• BS in food science, soil science, agricultural engineering or other
related field
• Familiarity with standard software (Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint)
• Excellent communication and organizational skills

Additional qualifications (required at time of start)

• Prior work experience in a laboratory and basic proficiency with pipetting and liquid handling, sample cataloguing, plating, and notebook maintenance

Preferred qualifications (other preferred, but not required, qualifications for the position)

• Experience working in agricultural field trials, particularly those involving soil monitoring and sampling
• Experience using HPLC
• Able to perform common statistical analyses (regression, ANOVA)
• Familiarity or experience working with soil fumigation alternatives (e.g., solarization, biosolarization)
• Demonstrated ability in aseptic technique
• Experience conducting 5-day biochemical oxygen demand assays
• Experience maintaining a chemical inventory
• Experience extracting DNA from soil samples and generating marker gene amplicons using PCR

Apply link: https://recruit.ucdavis.edu/JPF06553