Junior Specialist - Lazcano Lab

Position overview

Salary range: Step 1, $57,000/Anually

Open date: August 26, 2026

Next review date: Thursday, Sep 10, 2026 at 11:59pm (Pacific Time) Apply by this date to ensure full consideration by the committee.

Final date: Wednesday, Sep 30, 2026 at 11:59pm (Pacific Time) Applications will continue to be accepted until this date, but those received after the review date will only be considered if the position has not yet been filled.

The Lazcano Soil Biodiversity and Health Lab is seeking a highly motivated individual to contribute to the ongoing projects in soil ecology and soil health in different agricultural settings ([Soil Biodiversity and Health Lab
- Healthy soils for healthy food and a healthy planet]sample statement).

The successful candidate will participate in soil sampling and analysis to determine the variability in different aspects of soil health in wine grape production. Parallel research will try to determine the biological processes underpinning changes in soil health under different management strategies.

The Junior specialist will interact closely with growers and perform field sampling in different regions of California, with occasional samplings that will require traveling to Oregon and Washington. In addition, the Junior Specialist will be expected to perform lab management tasks such as waste management, safety protocols and coordination of instrument use.

Under the supervision of Dr. Lazcano, the Junior Specialist will perform the following duties:

• Coordination and leading of soil sampling events, in collaboration with the lab graduate students and postdocs.
• Collection of soil, plant and gas samples at the field sites
• Processing of the samples collected (sieving, drying, grinding)
• Biochemical analyses of the samples (microbial biomass, C and N contents, microbial activity, etc.)
• Maintenance and troubleshooting of the instruments and tools in the lab
• Recordkeeping, data entry and synthesis.
• Implementation and maintenance of UC Davis lab safety requirements
• Participation in regular lab meetings
• Regular and fluent communication with the PI and graduate students
• Review research proposals, journal manuscripts, and publications related to area of expertise.
• Contribution to scholarly scientific manuscripts from the lab, by writing methods, creating figures and performing statistical analyses on the data collected

Professional competence (5%):
The Junior Specialist will be encouraged to attend and present at regular laboratory group meetings, attend seminars at the university, and local scientific and extension meetings to present data. Examples of meetings where the candidate would present are, wine-industry field days, The California Plant and Soil annual conference, the California Annual Small Farm Conference as well as the annual meetings of the American Geophysical Union and the Soil Science Society of America.

University and public service (5%):
The Junior Specialist may mentor undergraduate lab assistants working in the lab

"Required to hold valid driver's license, have a driving record that is in accordance with local policies/procedures, and/or enroll in the California Employer Pull Notice Program."

Bachelors degree in Environmental Science, Sustainable Agricultural Systems, Soil Science, Biology, Agricultural Engineering or similar.

In general, it is inappropriate to appoint an individual with a Master's or Doctoral degree in the relevant discipline or a baccalaureate degree plus three or more years of experience with the specialized methods as a Junior Specialist.

• Experience with field collection of soil samples
• Experience with measurement of soil greenhouse gas emissions
• Experience with processing soil samples
• Experience with data management on Excel
• Valid California driver's license (or ability to obtain one).

• Experience operating a LICOR N2O portable analyzer
• Analysis of soil biochemical properties such as plant available N, mineralizable and active C
• Operation of Vario MAX CN analyzer

• Curriculum Vitae
  - Your most recently updated C.V.
• Cover Letter (Optional)
• Authorization to Release Information Form
  - This form is required for all applicants applying to academic recruitments. Please see the Employment Disclosure Requirements webpage for more information. Download, complete, sign, and upload the form.

• 2-3 required (contact information only)

As a condition of employment, the finalist will be required to disclose if they are subject to any final administrative or judicial decisions within the last seven years determining that they committed any misconduct.

• "Misconduct" means any violation of the policies or laws governing conduct at the applicant's previous place of employment, including, but not limited to, violations of policies prohibiting sexual harassment, sexual assault, or other forms of harassment or…