Prairie Research Institute

blog posts

• Fisheries Management Technician (Hourly) - Illinois Natural History Survey

  Dec 6, 2023 9:00 am

  The Illinois Natural History Survey is seeking multiple (up to 2) technicians to conduct field and laboratory work in support of sportfish management projects in streams and reservoirs in Illinois. Fieldwork responsibilities include measuring limnological parameters and sampling fish using boat electrofishing in reservoirs and stream electrofishing gears in wadable streams. This position will be based out of the Illinois Department of Natural Resources Office in Gibson City, Illinois 

• Senior Scientific Specialist, Field Ecology - Illinois Natural History Survey

  Dec 6, 2023 8:30 am

  The Illinois Natural History Survey is seeking a Field Ecologist to conduct basic and applied research assisting with ongoing surveys for amphibians, reptiles, freshwater mollusks, fishes, birds, pollinators, and noctuid moths that are threatened, endangered, and Species of Greatest Conservation Need (SGCN). This position will also involve assisting with planning, data collection, QA/QC, and analysis to support and undertake research studies associated with the Illinois State Toll Highway Authority.  This position will be based in Champaign, Illinois, and will require the individual to be on-site.  

• Fisheries/Aquatic Ecology Research Technician (Hourly): Kaskaskia Biological Station: Sullivan, Illinois

  Nov 30, 2023 12:00 pm

  The Illinois Natural History Survey is seeking Research Technicians to conduct field and laboratory work in support of research projects on sportfish management and invasion biology in lakes and rivers. This position is based out of the Kaskaskia Biological Station in Sullivan, Illinois. 

• Bat Survey Field Technician (Hourly) - Illinois Natural History Survey/PRI

  Nov 21, 2023 10:30 am

  The Illinois Natural History Survey is seeking 2 field technicians to assist with the 2024 summer field sampling for the Illinois Bat Conservation Program (IBCP), including acoustic surveys and mist netting. 

• Fisheries/Aquatic Ecology Research Technician (Hourly): Sam Parr Biological Station: Kinmundy, Illinois

  Nov 14, 2023 10:30 am

  The Sam Parr Biological Station is seeking research technicians to conduct field and experimental work as well as laboratory tasks in support of research projects on sportfish management and invasion biology in lakes and ponds. This position is based out of the Sam Parr Biological Station in Kinmundy, Illinois. 

• Research Field Technician (Hourly) - Illinois Natural History Survey

  Nov 6, 2023 1:30 pm

  The Illinois Natural History Survey is seeking 3 field technicians to conduct research on the behavior and habitat use of wild turkeys in Illinois. Primary responsibilities will include trapping, radio-tagging, tracking wild turkeys, and remotely downloading data from their transmitters. Housing and field vehicles are provided. Shared housing will be located near Shelbyville, Illinois which is approximately 30 minutes to an hour away from field sites.  

• NSF Research Experience for Undergraduates (REU) Program - Illinois Natural History Survey

  Nov 6, 2023 12:30 pm

  The Research Experiences for Undergraduates (REU) program sponsored by the National Science Foundation supports active research participation by undergraduate students in any of the areas of research funded by the Foundation. The Illinois Natural History Survey (Prairie Research Institute) at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign is seeking undergraduate students who want to be involved in an ongoing research project focused on the detection and characterization of phytoplasmas, a group of bacteria associated with insects (vectors, primarily Hemiptera) and plants (hosts) and implicated in plant disease.

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

  Aug 1, 2023 4:15 pm

  INHS is seeking field technicians (1-3) to conduct applied research in aquatic ecology and large river systems throughout the state of Illinois, focusing on the Mississippi River. Technicians will assist large river ecologists in the collection of standardized long-term river monitoring data with additional targeted data collection and lab sample processing. This position will be 40 hours per week and will be based in Macomb, Illinois. 

• Graduate Research Assistantships (MS or Ph.D.) - Illinois Natural History Survey

  Jul 18, 2023 9:45 am

  The Illinois Natural History Survey at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign is seeking a Graduate Research Assistant at the Master’s or Ph.D. level to work on the phylogenomics of phytoplasmas, a group of not-yet cultured bacteria associated with insects (vectors, primarily Hemiptera) and plants (hosts) and implicated in plant disease. Position will be based in Champaign, Illinois and the selected candidate will be expected to apply and be accepted into the graduate college for enrollment in Fall 2023 or Spring 2024. 

• Senior Scientific Specialist or Assistant Research Scientist, Wetland Soils - Illinois Natural History Survey/PRI

  May 12, 2023 8:30 am

  The Illinois Natural History Survey is seeking a Wetland Soils Scientist at either the Senior Scientific Specialist or Assistant Research Scientist Level. The Wetland Soils Scientist will administer research activities of the Survey by developing, planning, directing, and conducting basic and applied research with an emphasis on the coordination and participation in wetland determinations, assessments, and monitoring. This position will be based in Champaign, Illinois

• Postdoctoral Research Associate (Aquatic Invertebrates) - Illinois Natural History Survey/PRI

  May 2, 2023 4:30 pm

  The Illinois Natural History Survey is seeking a Postdoctoral Research Associate to synthesize responses and vulnerabilities of priority aquatic invertebrates to precipitation extremes across the Midwest. The position is based in Champaign, Illinois (with possibility of remote work) and funded by the USGS Midwest Climate Adaptation Science Center.

• Public Health Entomology Technician (Hourly) - Illinois Natural History Survey

  May 2, 2023 9:45 am

  We are seeking hourly technicians for seasonal field and lab work on mosquito and tick surveillance and research. Our group focuses on understanding the distribution and density of vectors of public health concern throughout the state, how environmental factors shape and are altering vector population densities, tracking invasive tick and mosquito species, and understanding the diversity of mosquito- and tickborne pathogens present in Illinois. The position is based at the Illinois Natural History Survey Medical Entomology Lab, within the University Research Park in Champaign, Illinois.

• Fisheries/Aquatic Ecology Research Technician (Hourly): Kaskaskia Biological Station: Sullivan, Illinois

  May 2, 2023 9:00 am

  The Kaskaskia Biological Station is seeking 1-2 hourly Research Technician to conduct field and laboratory work in support of research projects on sportfish management and invasion biology in lakes and rivers.  Job offers come with an expected commitment of 12-24 months and this position will be based out of the Kaskaskia Biological Station in Sullivan, IL.

• Postdoctoral Research Associate (Population, Climate, and Disease Modeling) - Illinois Natural History Survey

  May 2, 2023 8:00 am

  The Illinois Natural History Survey is seeking a Postdoctoral Research Associate to collaborate on a project developing predictive models of avian disease in the Laurentian Great Lakes. This position will be based out of Champaign, Illinois. 

• Seasonal Creel/Fisheries Technician (Hourly) - Lake Michigan Biological Station

  Apr 25, 2023 10:45 am

  The Lake Michigan Biological Station is looking for a Seasonal Creel/Fisheries Technician to interview shoreline and boat anglers on their fishing effort, expenditures, harvest, and biological characteristics of fish in their possession. This position will be located at the Lake Michigan Biological Station in Zion, Illinois. Creel surveys and other fieldwork will take place at several sites in Cook County, IL and Lake County, IL. 

• Graduate Research Assistantships - Illinois Natural History Survey

  Oct 3, 2022 11:30 am

  The Illinois Natural History Survey (a division of the Prairie Research Institute of the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign) is seeking two Graduate Research Assistants to conduct research in aquatic ecology, invasion biology, or recreational fisheries management. Specifically, we seek an MS RA for a project on the behavioral ecology of the invasive Black Carp, including an experimental assessment of the flow preferences and predatory impacts of juvenile Black Carp. Secondly, we are seeking an MS or Ph.D. RA to conduct research on habitat enhancement of urban recreational fisheries.