Lab Technician

Job Responsibility:

Date Posted: 05/22/2025 Req ID: 43045 Faculty/Division: Temerty Faculty of Medicine Department: Dept of Biochemistry Campus: St. George (Downtown Toronto) Position Number: 00057760

Description:

About us: Home to over 40 departments and institutes, the University of Toronto's Temerty Faculty of Medicine lies at the heart of the Toronto Academic Health Science Network and is a global leader in ground-breaking research and education, spanning clinical medicine, basic science and the rehabilitation sciences sectors. Your opportunity: The Department of Biochemistry is a dynamic community of 70 faculty, 150 graduate students and 450 undergraduate students. Our research touches on fundamental questions on basic mechanisms of living systems as well as the discovery of new therapeutics against infection, cancer and neurodegenerative disease. Our departmental mission is to offer undergraduate and graduate education that is second-to-none in the world. We aim to prepare the best minds for careers in academia as well as the private sector. As Lab Technician, you will be part of a broader team where you will oversee day-to-day lab operational needs and perform lab experiments. You will also contribute to various projects, including analyzing data and drafting content for funding applications and research papers. Additionally, you will champion safety and compliance, ensuring procedures are understood and routine lab maintenance is undertaken. Your solid communication and organizational skills will be key to ensure the effective operations of our department. Your responsibilities will include:

• Modifying experimental processes and implementing more efficient ways to conduct experiments
• Editing and drafting content for funding applications and research papers.
• Coordinating routine maintenance of lab equipment, troubleshooting issues and liaising with service providers
• Developing a manual for best practices on lab operations and providing safety training to ensure compliance to procedures and standards
• Approving purchases within established limits
• Serving as a resource to others by providing (non-supervisory) job-related guidance

Essential Qualifications:

• Master's Degree or acceptable combination of equivalent experience.
• Minimum three (3) years of related, progressive experience within a University or comparable academic laboratory research environment
• Experience with implementing health and safety protocols including proper handling, culturing and genetic manipulation of bacterial and yeast cells.
• Writing standard operating procedures and providing safety training to staff to ensure compliance
• Experience contributing to research findings in academic journals, performing detailed scientific analysis on large datasets and complex statistical reporting
• Experience with lab maintenance and troubleshooting issues, liaising with service providers to fix malfunctioning laboratory equipment
• Experience drafting content and editing funding applications and tracking their progress
• Demonstrated experience modifying experimental processes and providing detailed explanations on process and techniques including DNA/RNA isolation, ligation, digestion, amplification, large-scale human cell culture, organoid cell culture, etc.
• Experience with bacterial protein expression and purification, organoid cell cultures and large-scale human cell cultures
• Proficient with Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint, SharePoint), basic computational tools (BLAST, primer design software), data sequencing technology (preparation of Illumina libraries)
• Experience using laboratory automation tools (robotics for liquid handling and strain library propagation)
• Extensive knowledgeof safe handling procedures for specialized lab equipment and material
• Must be able to operate, calibrate and troubleshoot laboratory equipment
• Team player with excellent interpersonal and communication skills (written and verbal) with a desire to exchange information with other members of the lab on a daily basis
• Excellent time management, organizational and multi-tasking skills
• Meticulous attention to detail
• Ability to exercise a high degree of judgement and initiative in decision-making situations while working with various stakeholders

Assets (Nonessential):

• PacBio library preparation and analysis of NGS/WGS sequencing data
• Operation of liquid- and plate-handling robotics.

To be successful in this role you will be:

• Communicator
• Organized
• Proactive
• Problem solver

This is a term position of 1 year.

Closing Date: 05/30/2025, 11:59PM ET Employee Group: USW Appointment Type : Grant - Term Schedule: Full-Time Pay Scale Group & Hiring Zone: USW Pay Band 12 - $79,874. with an annual step progression to a maximum of $102,147. Pay scale and job class assignment is subject to determination pursuant to the Job Evaluation/Pay Equity Maintenance Protocol. Job Category: Research Administration & Teaching Recruiter: Amanda Krmek

Lived Experience Statement Candidates who are members of Indigenous, Black, racialized and 2SLGBTQ+ communities, persons with disabilities, and other equity deserving groups are encouraged to apply, and their lived experience shall be taken into consideration as applicable to the posted position.