Research Technician / Senior Research Technician

The role focuses on providing technical support and expertise in the application of Oxford Nanopore Technology to assess agricultural soil microbiomes. You will be helping to devise, test and deliver protocols for in-field DNA extraction and sequencing, collating data and supporting analysis, and assisting in the delivery of knowledge exchange activities. You will be reporting to Dr Jennifer Rowntree in the School of Biological and Marine Sciences.,

• Provide general and specialist support for molecular laboratory and field based research activities
• Demonstrate techniques and equipment to colleagues and external stakeholders and provide training in their use
• Contribute to the development of new techniques and protocls in the area of research.
Due to the nature of the role, unfortunately we are unable to accommodate working from home. A current full driving licence (manual transmission) is essential as you will be driving University of Plymouth vehicles.This role is also subject to health surveillance with our Occupational Health team. The successful candidate may be required to obtain an ATAS Certificate prior to this research being undertaken. This is a part-time role working 22.2 hours per week on a fixed-term basis for 9 months due to the nature of the funding.

Can you contribute your expertise in soil microbiome sequencing to an exciting research project exploring the impact of Land Use Transitions for Net Zero on soil health indicators? We are seeking a Research Technician or Senior Research Technician with experience of sequencing soil samples for microbiome analysis to undertake sampling and anaytical duties within the UKRI funded LUNZ OpenLAND project. This is a research partnership with the University of East Anglia (UEA, lead organisation) and other partners.,
• A degree or equivalent (a higher degree is desireable) in a relavent subject area
• Professional experience of working in a molecular biology laboratory and adhereing to good lab practice
• Experience of working with sequencing technology.
Prior experience of using Oxford Nanopore Technology is desireable, as is some experience of post sequencing bioinformatics and data processing., Disability Confident About Disability Confident A Disability Confident employer will generally offer an interview to any applicant that declares they have a disability and meets the minimum criteria for the job as defined by the employer. It is important to note that in certain recruitment situations such as high-volume, seasonal and high-peak times, the employer may wish to limit the overall numbers of interviews offered to both disabled people and non-disabled people. For more details please go to .

You will be working within the University's Centre of Research excellence in Intelligent and Sustainable Productive Systems under the Soil Health theme and contributing to the development of the Centre's eDNA and metabarcoding Facility. The School of Biological and Marine Sciences holds a Bronze Athena SWAN award in recognition of our commitment to advance gender equality in higher education.


• Generous annual leave: 25 Days Annual Leave (pro rata if part-time) plus Bank Holidays & Closure Days
• Generous pension scheme
• Cycle to Work & Electric Car Scheme
• Employee Assistance Programme
• Development opportunities
• Enhanced family leave
• Flexible working
• Retailer discounts
• On-site nursery
• pro-rata'd basis for part-time working hours
A summary of our comprehensive benefits can be viewed here.