Assistant Professor in Plant or Macroalgae-Associated Microbial Communities and Interactions

University of California, Berkeley
· Department of Plant and Microbial Biology

California, United States

About This Opportunity

UC Berkeley is hiring a tenure-track Assistant Professor to study how plant or macroalgal hosts and their microbial communities respond to environmental stress, with relevance to crop resilience, pathogen defense, sustainable agriculture and the macroalgae bioeconomy.

The faculty search centers on host-associated microbial communities in plants or macroalgae and on the biological interactions that shape responses to environmental stress. Research may address plant- or macroalgae-microbiome relationships in viral, bacterial or fungal pathogen defense; soil microbial communities that could reduce dependence on pesticides and fertilizers or lower greenhouse-gas emissions; and microbial associations that influence macroalgal cultivation, health and climate resilience.

The successful faculty member is expected to build an independent, collaborative research program that connects fundamental discovery with agricultural and environmental applications. The Department of Plant and Microbial Biology offers greenhouse and field space and links to a broad Berkeley research ecosystem, including the Innovative Genomics Institute, Energy & Biosciences Institute, International Bioeconomy & Macroalgae Center, Plant Gene Expression Center, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Joint Genome Institute and Joint Bio Energy Institute.

The appointment also includes teaching in core plant and microbial biology curricula and mentoring undergraduate, graduate and postdoctoral researchers.

Level Researcher

Time Commitment Full-time

Start Date Jul 1, 2027

Duration Tenure-track faculty appointment

Reference Code JPF
05522

Field Plant and Macroalgae Microbiome Interactions

Specialization Agricultural and Biological Sciences

Organization Type University

Amount USD / Per Academic Year

Funding Type Salary

Funding Status Paid

Period Per Academic Year

PhD or equivalent international degree, or enrollment in a PhD or equivalent international degree-granting programme at the time of application.

Strong research productivity and scholarship in a relevant area such as plant-microbiome interactions, soil microbial ecology or microbial associations with macroalgae are preferred, together with evidence of scientific leadership, independence, collaboration, teaching and research mentoring.

Plant-microbiome research Soil microbial ecology Macroalgae-associated microbiome research

Research leadership Teaching Research mentoring Scientific collaboration Academic service