USDA-ARS Food Safety: Plant-Pathogen Interactions in Wheat

Organization

U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA)

USDA-ARS-HQ-

To submit your application, scroll to the bottom of this opportunity and click APPLY. A Complete Application Consists Of

• An application
• Transcript(s) — For this opportunity, an unofficial transcript or copy of the student academic records printed by the applicant or by academic advisors from internal institution systems may be submitted.  for detailed information about acceptable transcripts.
• A current resume/CV, including academic history, employment history, relevant experiences, and publication list
• Two educational or professional recommendations

All documents must be in English or include an official English translation.

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4/10/2026 3:00:00 PM Eastern Time Zone

Applications are reviewed on a rolling-basis.

A research opportunity is currently available with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Research Service (ARS), National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research, located at Peoria, Illinois.

The Agricultural Research Service (ARS) is the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s chief scientific in‑house research agency with a mission to find solutions to agricultural problems that affect Americans every day from field to table. ARS will deliver cutting‑edge, scientific tools and innovative solutions for American farmers, producers, industry, and communities to support the nourishment and well‑being of all people; sustain our nation’s agroecosystems and natural resources;

and ensure the economic competitiveness and excellence of our agriculture. The vision of the agency is to provide global leadership in agricultural discoveries through scientific excellence.

The overarching goal of our USDA‑ARS research lab is to enhance wheat resilience by improving nutritional integrity and disease resistance under abiotic stress conditions. Fusarium Head Blight (FHB) is one of the most devastating diseases affecting wheat globally, with significant impacts on yield, grain quality, and food safety. This project specifically focuses on evaluating the nutritional resilience and disease resistance of near isogenic wheat lines harboring key FHB resistance quantitative trait loci (QTLs) and grain protein enhancing traits under adverse growing conditions.

The research aims to generate a transcriptomic dataset to accelerate wheat breeding strategies for adaptive plant defense and nutritional integrity.

The participant will gain hands‑on experience in plant physiology, nutrition assessment, disease severity evaluation, transcriptomic analysis, and data interpretation using advanced sequencing technologies and bioinformatics tools. These skills will contribute to the participant’s understanding of plant genetics and breeding strategies for food security and safety.

Learn more about the research being conducted at NCAUR: https://(Use the "Apply for this Job" box below)./

• Develop bioinformatics skills
• Learn plant pathology, plant physiology methodology and skillset
• Learn to collaborate in a multi‑disciplinary research group
• Develop presentation and speaking skills
• Refine problem solving skills

The mentor for this opportunity is William Hay (william.hay). If you have questions about the nature of the research, please contact the mentor(s).

2026. Start date is flexible and will depend on a variety of factors.

The appointment will be for two years.

The appointment is full time.

The participant will receive a monthly stipend commensurate with educational level and experience.

The anticipated stipend is $74,678 minimum, annually.

This opportunity is available to U.S. citizens only.

This…