Research Assistant

Research Assistant

Texas A&M Agri Life is comprised of the following Texas A&M University System members:

• Texas A&M Agri Life Extension Service
• Texas A&M Agri Life Research
• College of Agriculture and Life Sciences at Texas A&M University
• Texas A&M Forest Service
• Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory

As the nation's largest most comprehensive agriculture program, Texas A&M Agri Life brings together a college and four state agencies focused on agriculture and life sciences within The Texas A&M University System. With over 5,000 employees and a presence in every county across the state, Texas A&M Agri Life is uniquely positioned to improve lives, environments and the Texas economy through education, research, extension and service.

Position Information

Job Responsibilities:

• 50 %:
  Field Ratings – Performs field ratings of pest presence, disease severity, pecan phenology, and tissue collection in mature and seedling trees.
• 20 %:
  Image Collection and Analysis – Obtains, organizes, and processes images of pecan trees, nuts, diseases, or pests from orchards or an on-site herbarium.
• 15 %:
  Data analysis – Leverages statistical, bioinformatic, or software tools to analyze data and images
• 10 %:
  Preserved Specimen Collection Maintenance – Assists in the inventory, sample preparation, pest management, and maintenance of an herbarium collection of pecan and hickory leaves and nuts.
• 5 %:
  Performs other duties as assigned.

Required

Education and Experience:

• A bachelor's degree in Horticulture, Plant Pathology, Entomology, Soil & Crop Sciences or a related field. An equivalent combination of education and experience may be considered.

Preferred Experience:

• Possess at least one (1) year of specialized experience participating in agricultural, genetics, or extension research.

Required licenses or certifications:

• Ability to obtain US Driver's license.

Required skills, knowledge or abilities:

• Be able to work under adverse conditions, such as high heat and humidity.
• Manages time effectively and prioritize tasks to meet project deadlines.
• Maintains detailed, accurate Field book/Jupyter notebooks, files, and documentation.
• Exceptional attention to detail to ensure accurate detection and identification of diseases.
• Demonstrate consistency in field ratings using provided rating scales.
• Ability to write reports, present findings, and communicate with scientific colleagues or farmers.
• Ability to lift and carry heavy objects greater than 50 lbs.
• Ability to work well with others.
• Research with fruit/nut tree crops.
• Comfortable working in a Unix and/or R software environment Bioinformatics and/or image analysis software, Fieldbook software.
• Pruning tower operation.
• Herbarium specimen mounting.
• Prepare and mount herbarium specimens for archival.
• Comfortable with manipulating SQL database structures.
• Write and/or run Python scripts to automate tasks.
• Knowledge of diseases, insects, and pests affecting pecans and hickories.
• BSL1+ Lab experience (preferably Genetics or Plant Biology).

Additional requirements:

This position involves regular exposure to tree nuts.

Position Funding:
This temporary position has an end date of August 31, 2027. Extension is contingent upon continued funding and project needs.

This position is not eligible for employment visa sponsorship. Applicants must be authorized to work in the United States and must not require sponsorship now or in the future.

Why Work at Texas A&M Agri Life?

When you choose to work for Texas A&M Agri Life, you become part of an organization that is an established leader in agriculture and life sciences with a wide range of capabilities to meet the needs of our statewide, national, and international constituents.

In addition, Texas A&M Agri Life offers a comprehensive benefit package including the following:

• Health, dental, vision, life and long-term disability insurance with Texas A&M Agri Life contributing to employee health and basic life premiums
• 12-15 days of annual paid holidays
• Up to eight hours of paid sick leave and at least eight hours of paid vacation each month
• Automatic enrollment in the Teacher Retirement System of Texas
• Employee Wellness Initiative for Texas A&M Agri Life

Application Instructions

Applications received by Texas A&M Agri Life must either have all job application data entered or a resume attached. Failure to provide all job application data or a complete resume could result in an invalid submission and a rejected application. We encourage all applicants to upload a resume or use a Linked In profile to prepopulate the online application.

Required Documents

CV/ Resume

Cover letter

List of references

Certifications/ additional documentation

All positions are security-sensitive. Applicants are subject to a criminal history investigation, and employment is contingent upon the institution's verification of credentials and/or other information required by the institution's procedures, including the completion of the criminal history check.

Equal Opportunity/Veterans/Disability Employer.