Posted on March 25, 2025

Position Information

We are seeking applicants for full-time employment to assist the University of Missouri Soybean Breeding program for the 2025 field season. Part-time positions are also available during the semester. This will be a great opportunity for students to gain experience in a field research program.

Job Duties

The Field Research Assistant position supports field and seed lab activities. This is a technical position in a plant breeding and research program. Duties may include, but are not limited to:  preparing seed for planting yield tests, working on planter crew to plant yield tests, cross-pollination of soybean lines to produce hybrid lines, collecting plant tissue samples, weeding and maintenance of field plots, taking field notes (soybean flower color, pubescence color, maturity, plant erectness, plant height, plant stand counts, seed weight, and other field notes associated with a soybean breeding program), seed cleaning, quality control, working on combine crews during harvest, and maintaining a clean work environment.

Required Skills

This position requires excellent observational, record keeping, organizational, and troubleshooting skills in addition to basic computer skills (e.g. Microsoft Word & Excel). Applicants should be able to work well with others as well as work independently. Our program is based at the Farm For Soy Innovation near Columbia, but we also have a primary off-site location in northeast Missouri, and other off-site field locations across the state. This position will require travel for field work and field notes.

This position will report to the Farm For Soy Innovation (near Bradford Research & Extension Center – approximately 9 miles southeast of MU campus) and personal transportation is required. Applicants must be able to work outdoors between 8 a.m. to 12 p.m. and/or 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. (Monday-Friday). If working during the semester, at least two shifts (8 total hours minimum) per week are required.

Preferred Qualifications

Other Comments

If interested, send an email to Clinton Meinhardt (meinhardtc@missouri.edu), Mariola Usovsky (klepadlom@missouri.edu), and Andrew Scaboo (scabooa@missouri.edu) with the following information: your name, year in school, major, shifts available to work, an unofficial transcript, and any plant breeding and/or farm experience. Please include “Field Research Assistant” in the subject line.