• Full time, 3-year fixed term position. Located at the School of Life and Environmental Sciences on the Camperdown Campus
• Opportunity to contribute to cutting-edge research and collaborate with leading scientists in the field of microbial ecology
• Base Salary $109,301 - $116,679 p.a. (Level A) + 17% superannuation
  About the opportunity
  The
  School of Life and Environmental Sciences
  is currently seeking a Postdoctoral Research Associate in Microbial Ecology to work on a project investigating how variation in resource supply shapes the function and assembly of soil and gut microbial systems.
  The successful candidate will work under the supervision of Professor Charles Warren, Assoc Prof Andrew Holmes and Dr Alistair Senior on an Australian Research Council Discovery Project entitled “Stoichiometric flexibility shapes microbial function and community assembly.” We will reveal how change in elemental stoichiometry of cells (e.g. via intracellular storage physiology) relates to fluctuating resource supply and competitive interactions that affect community assembly and ecosystem processes.
  The project involves integrating microcosm experiments with in silico modelling to create and test a predictive model of community dynamics and function. The postdoctoral position is centered on microbial ecology, but the ability to combine empirical results with computational biology would be highly valued.

Your key responsibilities will be to:

• work collaboratively with the project PIs on an ARC-funded research project
• design and carry out experiments that manipulate community composition of soil and gut model systems
• quantify microbial community composition and function (e.g. via metagenomics and metabolomics)
• carry experiments through to completion, including for peer-reviewed publications and conference presentations.

About you

The University values courage and creativity; openness and engagement; inclusion and diversity; and respect and integrity. As such, we see the importance of recruiting talent aligned to these values and are looking for a Postdoctoral Research Associate in Microbial Ecology who has:

• a PhD in Microbial Ecology or similar
• proven research ability, and evidence of self-motivation and research potential in experimental microbial ecology and analytical techniques (e.g. microbiome manipulation, chemostat measurements, metabolomics, metagenomics) to manipulate and quantify community composition
• proven ability to design appropriate experiments to address the underlying research question, as well as experience in setting up experiments
• demonstrated ability to conduct research/scholarly activities under limited supervision
• the ability and a willingness to collaborate in multidisciplinary teams to contribute to long-term research goals
• demonstrated excellence in research within a related area through published research in refereed journals.

Pre-employment checks
Your employment is conditional upon the completion of all role required pre-employment or background checks in terms satisfactory to the University. Similarly, your ongoing employment is conditional upon the satisfactory maintenance of all relevant clearances and background check requirements. If you do not meet these conditions, the University may take any necessary step, including the termination of your employment.
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• work collaboratively with the project PIs on an ARC-funded research project
• design and carry out experiments that manipulate community composition of soil and gut model systems
• quantify microbial community composition and function (e.g. via metagenomics and metabolomics)
• carry experiments through to completion, including for peer-reviewed publications and conference presentations