USDA-ARS Fellowship in Pre-harvest STEC Food Safety Research

About the role

The Agricultural Research Service (ARS) is seeking a fellow to conduct pre-harvest STEC food safety research at the Food Safety and Enteric Pathogens Research Unit in Ames, Iowa. The fellowship is designed to provide hands-on experience in microbiological, molecular biological, immunological, and histological techniques.

Responsibilities

• Conduct in vitro and/or in vivo experiments evaluating microbial colonization factors and host responses
• Characterize bacteria/bacterial communities
• Test dietary and other control modalities
• Learn and hone microbiological, molecular biological, immunological, and histological techniques
• Develop lab protocols
• Collect and analyze data with statistics
• Communicate research findings

Requirements

This opportunity is available to U.S. citizens only. The fellow should have received or be currently pursuing a bachelor's or master's degree in microbiology/molecular biology. Degree must have preferably been received within the past 2 years or anticipated to be received by 9/1/2026.

• Basic microbiology techniques (culture and media-buffer-glassware preparation, staining)
• Basic molecular techniques (nucleic acid preparation, PCR, RT-qPCR, cloning, mutant generation)
• Basic histological methods (sectioning, staining, microscopy)
• Basic immunology techniques (ELISA, immunoblots)
• Some "omics" related knowledge is useful.

Qualifications

• U.S. Citizenship
• Bachelor's or Master's Degree in Microbiology/Molecular Biology received within the past 2 years or anticipated to be received by 9/1/2026

Skills

• Basic microbiology techniques (culture and media-buffer-glassware preparation, staining)
• Basic molecular techniques (nucleic acid preparation, PCR, RT-qPCR, cloning, mutant generation)
• Basic histological methods (sectioning, staining, microscopy)
• Basic immunology techniques (ELISA, immunoblots)
• Some "omics" related knowledge is useful.

Benefits

No specific benefits are mentioned for this fellowship.

Pay

The participant will receive a monthly stipend commensurate with educational level and experience. The anticipated stipend range is $3,422.00 - $3,814.75 monthly.

Schedule

The appointment will initially be for one year, but may be renewed upon recommendation of ARS and is contingent on the availability of funds.

Contact

Please visit our Program Website for more information. After reading, if you have additional questions about the application process, please email ORISE.ARS.Midwest@orau.org and include the reference code for this opportunity.