PAID POSITION: ENTOMOLOGY UNDERGRADUATE RESEARCH TECHNICIANS
Location: College Park, MD
Department: CMNS, Entomology
Supervisors: Principal Investigator (PI) Niranjana Krishnan
Salary: $16/hour; maximum of 20 hours/week during the fall/spring semester and 40 hours/week
during the summer/winter semesters.
Duration: One year depending on satisfactory performance
Position description: The Krishnan Lab in the Entomology department at the University of Maryland, College Park, is seeking two undergraduate research technicians. The position will start earliest in June 2025. The undergraduate students will help set up insect and plant colonies, maintain them, record data, and assist graduate students with experiments. Most work will be undertaken in the lab and greenhouse, with minimal field work. The position could require working on some weekends/holidays.
Primary responsibilities:- Setting up and maintaining Drosophila, beetle, and butterfly colonies.
- Setting up and maintaining plants in the greenhouse.
- Assisting with homogenizing leaf samples for pesticide toxicity bioassays.
- Noting down observations in the lab and greenhouse and taking photos/videos.
- Entering data into spreadsheets.
- Ability to work a minimum of 10 hours/week most of the year – ideally, at least 20 hours/week in the summer and winter breaks.
- Ability to perform repetitive tasks precisely and consistently.
- Ability to work independently and as part of a team (must be confirmed by references)
- Experience rearing insects.
- Ability to work with delicate larvae and eggs
- Experience rearing plants.
- Potting, pruning, watering, transplanting, etc.
- Experience undertaking laboratory work.
- Ability to use a pipette, microscope/dissecting microscope, and perform insect dissections
- Career goals in science, agriculture, or entomology.
Closing date: Applications will be accepted on a rolling basis and the position will remain open until filled. Position start date is between June to August 2025.
Application materials: Interested applicants should send a cover letter, CV/resume, and a list of two references to Niranjana Krishnan (nkrish@umd.edu).
The University of Maryland, College Park, actively subscribes to a policy of equal employment opportunity, and will not discriminate against any employee or applicant because of race, age, sex, color, sexual orientation, physical or mental disability, religion, ancestry or national origin, marital status, genetic information, political affiliation, and gender identity or expression. Minorities and women are encouraged to apply.