Research Assistant I (Larsen Lab

Research Assistant I (Larsen Lab)

As a Jesuit, Catholic institution of higher education, we seek candidates who will contribute to our strategic plan to deliver a Transformative Education in the Jesuit tradition. To learn more about Loyola University Chicago's mission, candidates should consult our website .edu/mission/. For information about the university's focus on transformative education, they should consult our website .edu/transformativeed.

Job Title - RESEARCH ASST I

Position Number - 8151041

Work Modality
- Fully In-Person

Is this request for the creation of a new Position (or the modification of an existing Position) to temporarily support the Work Day ERP? - Yes

Job Category
- University Staff

Job Type
- Full-Time

FLSA Status
- Non-Exempt

Campus
- Maywood-Health Sciences Campus

Department Name - DEPARTMENT OF MEDICINE

Location Code - DEPARTMENT OF MEDICINE (06500A)

Is this split and/or fully grant funded? - Yes

Duties and Responsibilities
- We are seeking a motivated Research Technician to join our laboratory studying host-microbiome interactions and microbial metabolism. The successful candidate will contribute to ongoing projects involving microbiome sequencing, metabolic modeling, and cheminformatic analysis of microbial metabolites. The Research Technician will perform and assist in the design of 16S rRNA sequencing workflows, conduct bioinformatic analysis of microbiome datasets, and contribute to the computational modeling of microbial community metabolism.

The position also involves maintaining laboratory records, managing sample inventories, and contributing to manuscript and grant preparation.

Minimum Education and/or Work Experience

- Education Required:

Bachelors Degree OR equivalent training acquired via work experience or education

Preferred:
Bachelors Degree Experience Required :
None Preferred: 1-2 years of previous job-related experience

Qualifications - A Bachelor of Science degree in biology, biochemistry, chemistry, computational biology, or a closely related field is required. Candidates must have hands-on experience with microbiome sequencing methodologies and proficiency in downstream bioinformatic analysis using standard pipelines and tools. Computational experience including scripting in Python or R and familiarity with Linux/command-line environments is required. A background in chemistry and/or chemo informatics, including experience with chemical structure databases, metabolite annotation, or cheminformatic toolkits, is also required.

Experience with metabolic flux modeling (e.g., MICOM, COBRApy) or multi-omics data integration is a plus, as is familiarity with machine learning applications in biological data analysis. This is a full-time position based in an academic research laboratory. The role involves both wet-lab and computational work. Candidates who thrive in a collaborative, fast-paced research environment and who demonstrate strong organizational and communication skills are encouraged to apply.

Computer Skills
- Basic Computer Skills – MS Office

Supervisory Responsibilities
- No

Required operation of university owned vehicles
- No

Does this position require direct animal or patient contact? - Yes

Physical Demands
- Repetitive Motions

Working Conditions
- Ventilation, Odors, Animals

Open Date - 07/28/2026

Position Maximum Salary or Hourly Rate - $22/hr

Position Minimum Salary or Hourly Rate - $18/hr

About Loyola University Chicago
- Founded in 1870, Loyola University Chicago is one of the nation's largest Jesuit, Catholic universities, recognized for its academic excellence, commitment to community engagement, and leadership in sustainability. A Carnegie R1 research institution, Loyola leverages its status as one of an elite group of universities with the highest level of research activity to advance knowledge that serves communities and creates global impact.

With 15 schools, colleges, and institutes—including Business, Law, Medicine, Nursing, and Health Sciences—Loyola operates three primary campuses in the greater Chicago area and one in Rome, Italy, that provide students a transformative, globally connected learning experience. Consistently ranked among the…