blog posts

• Medical Entomology Field Technician (Hourly): Illinois Natural History Survey

  Mar 10, 2025 2:45 pm

  The Illinois Natural History Survey’s Medial Entomology Lab is seeking undergraduate students or hourly technicians for seasonal field and lab work on mosquito and tick surveillance and research. 

• Undergraduate Hourly, Graduate Hourly, Academic Hourly

  Mar 4, 2025 8:00 am

  We are seeking up to three motivated individuals to participate in and support original research and technology development in one or more areas of carbon capture & utilization, critical materials recovery, and the beneficial utilization of waste materials. Responsibilities include participating in laboratory and bench-scale experiments and analytical characterization to evaluate new materials and processes, assisting in the assembly and troubleshooting of experimental setups, analyzing experimental data, supporting modeling efforts, performing literature searches, as well as preparing reports and documentation.

• Grants and Contract Assistant, Specialist, or Coordinator

  Feb 28, 2025 11:00 am

  PRI is seeking to hire either a Grants and Contracts Assistant, Specialist, or Coordinator (dependent upon experience) to provide expertise and facilitate operations for its Grants and Contracts office.

• Research Technician (Hourly) - Grassland Bird Study - Illinois Natural History Survey: Deadline to Apply: March 31, 2025

  Feb 25, 2025 3:00 pm

  The Illinois Natural History Survey is seeking a research technician to assist with data collection examining the impacts of woody encroachment on avian nest predation and habitat use in grasslands. Work will take place in Northern/Central Illinois and shared lodging will be provided. 

• Director, Illinois Natural History Survey - PRI: Deadline to Apply: March 31, 2025

  Feb 25, 2025 11:00 am

  The Illinois Natural History Survey (INHS), a leader in investigating and preserving biological resources in Illinois and beyond, is seeking a visionary Director and Principal Research Scientist. This dual-role position offers a unique opportunity to direct strategic initiatives, lead groundbreaking research, and influence conservation efforts. While this position offers an opportunity to independently develop a research program, the main focus of this position will be as Director and will provide strategic leadership and administration for INHS. 

   

• Hazard Mitigation Planning

  Feb 25, 2025 10:45 am

  The Illinois State Water Survey (ISWS) is seeking to hire an experienced Hazard Mitigation Planner (Official Title: Scientific Specialist, Hazard Mitigation Planning ) to lead CHAMP's Resilience and Mitigation (ResMit) team in developing and implementing comprehensive hazard mitigation strategies, managing FEMA grants, and advancing innovative resilience solutions. Direct technical and programmatic activities related to FEMA's Hazard Mitigation Assistance (HMA) and Risk Mapping, Assessment, and Planning (Risk MAP) programs. Provide strategic leadership in expanding CHAMP's mitigation and resilience initiatives.

  The ISWS CHAMP group has many funded projects that assess local flood hazards, identify high-risk areas, and engage community partners to inform, educate, and empower others to take action in preventing losses from natural hazards. CHAMP is a Cooperating Technical Partner with the Federal Emergency Management Agency creating maps and products as reflected on https://illinoisfloodmaps.org/.

  ISWS is part of the Prairie Research Institute at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, which is centrally located between Chicago, St. Louis, and Indianapolis. Our research and service programs provide citizens, industries, and government agencies at all levels with timely, science-based information and analyses necessary to manage our water resources wisely for economic development and a sustainable environment.   Learn more at go.illinois.edu/PRIjobs.

• Black-Billed Cuckoo Field Technician (Hourly) - Illinois Natural History Survey

  Feb 21, 2025 4:00 pm

  The Illinois Natural History Survey is seeking 2 field technicians to assist on an M.S. research project studying Black-billed Cuckoo (BBCU) migration. The position will begin in Mid May and run through Mid July. 

• Chemist - Illinois State Water Survey, PRI, Illinois

  Feb 21, 2025 1:00 pm

  The Illinois State Water Survey (ISWS) is seeking to hire an Analytical Chemist (Official Title: Senior Scientific Specialist, Analytical Chemistry) to conduct chemical analyses, ensure an adequate supply of required reagents and supplies, and maintain analytical instruments.). This position will focus on analysis of routine water samples for a variety of organic and inorganic parameters including metals, ions and nutrients. Sample analysis is performed using standard operating procedures for Ion Chromatography (IC), Inductively Couple Plasma-Optical Emission Spectroscopy (ICP-OES), Flow Injection Analysis (FIA), and other techniques.

• Fisheries/Aquatic Ecology Research Technician (Hourly): Kaskaskia Biological Station: Sullivan, Illinois - Application Deadline: April 4, 2025

  Feb 18, 2025 1:15 pm

  The Kaskaskia Biological Station with the Illinois Natural History Survey is seeking a Fisheries/Aquatic Ecology Research Technician to conduct field and laboratory work in support of research projects on sportfish management and invasion biology in lakes and rivers. 

  Thi position is located at the Kaskaksia Biological Station in Sullivan, Illinios. 

• Visiting Scientific Specialist, Environmental Assessments - Illinois State Geological Survey - Deadline to Apply 6:00 p.m. April 1, 2025

  Feb 11, 2025 8:45 am

  The Illinois State Geological Survey is seeking to hire a Visiting Scientific Specialist, Environmental Assessment Researcher to perform sponsored research on environmental assessments.  The assessments will involve evaluating potential environmental and geologic hazards and risks for Illinois Department of Transportation (IDOT) infrastructure improvement projects. IDOT's infrastructure projects range in size and can involve anything from a single property to hundreds of properties across many miles of existing or future highways.  IDOT uses the assessments completed by ISGS to protect workers and public safety, to reduce IDOT's liability, and to minimize delays by operating in an efficient and cost-effective manner.  Please visit jobs.illinois.edu for further information regarding application procedures, or you may contact Jill Billerman at jrandell@illinois.edu. Application deadline is 6:00 p.m. (CST) on Tuesday, April 1, 2025.

• Survey Director- Illinois State Water Survey/PRI

  Feb 10, 2025 11:00 am

  The Illinois State Water Survey is seeking a Survey Director who will provide strategic direction and overall administration for the Survey and administer research activities by conceiving, recommending, implementing, directing, and participating in scientific research, focused on the selected candidate’s area of study, while contributing to the overall scientific mission of the Prairie Research Institute. This position will also hold a Principal Research Scientist job. This is an in-person position based in Champaign, Illinois.
  
  The Illinois State Water Survey (ISWS) has a 130-year history of providing citizens, industries, and government agencies at all levels with timely, science-based information and analyses necessary to manage our water resources wisely for economic development and a sustainable environment. The 125 scientists, technicians, and students conduct state-of-the-art research and collect, analyze, archive, and disseminate high-quality, objective data and technical information. The ISWS has been at the forefront of many firsts and contributed to hydrologic and climate concepts still used nationally and internationally today. (https://doi.org/10.1111/1752-1688.13139)  

• Stream and River Research Technicians (Hourly) - Illinois Natural History Survey - Deadline to Apply: March 31, 2025

  Jan 30, 2025 12:15 pm

  The Stream Ecology lab at the Illinois Natural History Survey is seeking up to 6 research technicians to conduct bioassessments of aquatic life in streams and rivers in Illinois.

  The position will be based in Champaign Illinois, but travel will occur throughout the state. 

• Part-Time Green Processes Research Assistant

  Jan 27, 2025 8:30 am

  ISTC is seeking to hire an Academic Hourly or Student Hourly to conduct research to advance the development of green processes for hydrogen production in support of industrial decarbonization. The position is based in Champaign, Illinois.

• Research Lab Part-Time Assistant

  Jan 27, 2025 8:30 am

  The Illinois Sustainable Technology Center, a division of the Prairie Research Institute at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, is seeking an upper-level undergraduate/graduate research hourly with a chemical engineering/nuclear and plasma engineering/chemistry/mechanical engineering background to work on a 12–24-month research project related to Plasma-based CO2 capture and conversion.

• Seasonal Fisheries Technician (Hourly): Kaskaskia Biological Station - Sullivan, Illinois

  Jan 24, 2025 10:45 am

  The Illinois Natural History Survey is seeking Seasonal Fisheries Technicians to conduct in-person angler interviews at fishing lakes within the central Illinois region as part of a research project to investigate the effects of harvest regulations on angler catch rates and satisfaction. Positions are seasonal, May-October, with flexibility for later start dates and earlier end dates to accommodate school schedules.  

• Environmental Laboratory Assistant (Hourly Assistant)

  Jan 10, 2025 4:15 pm

  Illinois Sustainable Technology Center, Prairie Research Institute, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign 
  

  We are seeking an individual to provide support in an environmental lab.

  Duties will include glassware cleaning, housekeeping, reagent and sample preparations. The candidate will be trained and required to support projects relating to environmental contaminants, with a focus on rare earth elements. This will include the processing of aqueous and solid samples. The candidate will also perform ion chromatography and spectroscopic analysis of materials and will prepare data reports for review. 

• Macroinvertebrate Technician (Hourly) - Illinois Natural History Survey : Macomb, Illinois

  Nov 19, 2024 5:00 pm

  The Illinois River Biological Station is seeking two technicians to conduct applied research in aquatic ecology and large river systems and process riverine samples for aquatic macroinvertebrates.  throughout the state of Illinois. This position will be 40 hours per week and will be based in Macomb, Illinois.

• Postdoctoral Research Associate, Analytical Chemistry - Illinois Sustainable Technology Center

  Oct 30, 2024 9:00 am

  The researcher will primarily focus on developing analytical methods for major cations, anions, trace metals, and rare earth elements (REE) in CCR effluents. Desired expertise includes inorganic analytical chemistry, sample enrichment/separation, spectroscopic analytical instrumentation, and processing of REE and critical minerals (CM).

• Postdoctoral Fellow, Climatology

  Oct 15, 2024 10:15 am

  Postdoctoral Fellow at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign: Maritime to Inland Transitions Towards ENvironments for Convection Initiation (MITTEN-CI) 
  

  A Postdoctoral Fellow position is available to join a university institute-based research group focused on analyzing observational data and improving understanding of the evolution of the lower atmosphere in response to differing land/water areas traversed by the air in the Great Lakes region. Prospective candidates must have a strong background in atmospheric science, as well as extensive programming and data visualization skills.

• Postdoctoral Research Associate - Illinois Sustainable Technology Center, Prairie Research Institute

  Oct 1, 2024 12:00 pm

  ISTC is seeking to hire a Postdoctoral Research Associate to conduct laboratory and field experiments for plant uptake and mitigation of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) derived from biosolids application. In particular, there is interest in developing new treatment techniques to remediate these forever chemicals in various environmental media, including water, soils, biosolid,s and food plants.