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. Click here 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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*Applications are reviewed on a rolling-basis.

ARS Office/Lab and Location: A research opportunity is currently available with the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), Agricultural Research Service (ARS), located at the Grape Genetics Research Unit, Geneva, New York.

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.

Research Project: The Abiotic Stress Laboratory at Grape Genetics Research Unit (GGRU), USDA's purpose is to understand the grapevine response to environmental stressors like cold/freezing, drought, heat, and nutrient stresses. The research goal is to expedite research findings on understanding fundamental plant growth and developmental processes. The participant will gain advanced genetic and genomic knowledge on grapevine stress responses and enable identifying grapevines tolerance to adverse growing conditions. The participant will be able to establish robust collaborations with faculty at Cornell University, Cornell Agri-tech, Geneva Campus, and USDA-ARS scientists and communicate findings through manuscripts and newsletters.

Learning Objectives: The participant will have an opportunity to gain experience in plant genetic analysis, pipeline development, trait identification and mapping analysis.

Mentor(s): The mentor for this opportunity is Dr. Silvas Kirubakaran (silvas.kirubakaran@usda.gov). If you have questions about the nature of the research, please contact the mentor(s).

Anticipated Appointment Start Date: October 2025. Start date is flexible and will depend on a variety of factors.

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

Level of Participation: The appointment is full time.

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

Citizenship Requirements: This opportunity is available to U.S. citizens and Lawful Permanent Residents (LPR) only.

ORISE Information: This program, administered by ORAU through its contract with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to manage the Oak Ridge Institute for Science and Education (ORISE), was established through an interagency agreement between DOE and ARS. Participants do not become employees of USDA, ARS, DOE or the program administrator, and there are no employment-related benefits. Proof of health insurance is required for participation in this program. Health insurance can be obtained through ORISE.

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

The qualified candidate should have received or be pursuing a doctoral degree in one of the relevant fields (plant breeding or genomics related area).

Preferred skills:

• Highly motivated with knowledge in assessing multi-omic data and perform comprehensive genetic and genomic analysis.
• Understanding of genetics, genomic analysis and trait mapping protocols.
• Hands-on experience in QTL mapping, association studies and genomic prediction.
• Controlled (greenhouse/glass house/growth chambers) and wet lab research experience.
• Experience in statistical packages (SAS), R, Python, or similar programming skills.

• Citizenship: LPR or U.S. Citizen
• Degree: Doctoral Degree.
• Discipline(s):
  • Life Health and Medical Sciences (3 )