Lab Assistant

Who We Are

Founded in 1965, UC Irvine is a member of the prestigious Association of American Universities and is ranked among the nation's top 10 public universities by U.S. News & World Report. The campus has produced five Nobel laureates and is known for its academic achievement, premier research, innovation and anteater mascot. Led by Chancellor Howard Gillman, UC Irvine has more than 36,000 students and offers 224 degree programs. It's located in one of the world's safest and most economically vibrant communities and is Orange County's second-largest employer, contributing $7 billion annually to the local economy and $8 billion statewide.

To learn more about UC Irvine, visit

Today's UC Irvine Stem Cell Research Center is a dynamic center encompassing a diverse array of interdisciplinary investigators that span the schools of Medicine, Biological Sciences, Pharmaceutical Sciences, Engineering, Arts and Law. Our state-of-the-art, LEED Platinum certified research and clinical building houses 23 of our 50 center faculty members.


Center faculty have obtained more than $170 million dollars in grant and foundation funds. Our research programs include an National Institutes of Health (NIH)-sponsored T32 training grant, state of the art shared equipment, research services programs and a seminar series.

Your Role on the Team

Under supervision of the PI, or other senior lab personnel, the incumbent may perform tasks including but not limited to: assisting with experiments, working as part of a team, and independent tasks; attending staff meetings; writing/updating/distributing lab protocols, SOPS, project plans/summaries/reports; training new personnel; preparing solutions, maintaining detailed paper and electronic records of study data; adhering to all experimental protocol and good laboratory practices, maintaining safety training and safe work procedures; lab maintenance including supply inventory, equipment maintenance, cleaning, organizing, and managing lab spaces and materials; and performing other duties as assigned.


Lab duties include, but are not limited to:


Animal care and Histology:
Assists in animal laboratory research projects. Research projects may consist of: Assist with breeding colonies (setting up cages, tissue collection for genotyping, detailed record keeping), perform survival and terminal surgical procedures in rodents. Daily monitoring of animals for health. Assist with histological analyses including tissue sectioning staining and/or quantification using stereological analysis of CNS tissue samples using MicroBrightField StereoInvestigator, Volocity and Imaris image analysis software.


Cell and Molecular Biology:
Duties may include maintenance of multiple cell lines (mouse or human stem cells, cortical cells, etc.), cell culture assays, flow cytometry and immunocytochemistry, such as DNA/RNA/Protein isolation and electrophoresis, PCR, rtPCR, qPCR, Western Blot, Molecular Cloning, ELISA.
Cell culture and differentiation duties may include isolate neural stem cells by mouse brain microdissection, passage, maintain, expand and freeze human and mouse neural and pluripotent stem cells. Follow written protocols to perform neural induction from pluripotent cells. Follow supervisor's instructions on animal husbandry.
Cellular Analysis may include cell analysis by immunocytochemistry, flow cytometry and FACS. May be required to follow written protocols for engineering/bioengineering cell analysis platforms, 3D biomaterials, and sectioning.

General Lab Support including, but not limited to:

Lab maintenance: databases for ordering and inventory
Follow written instructions to prepare stock solutions, cell culture media, and assist other researchers in the lab.


Maintaining and updating our lab social media accounts: This will include posting updates and pictures to our lab Twitter and BlueSky accounts related to recent lab achievements including new grants, papers, and presentations.


Arranging travel: The employee will coordinate with the principal investigator and invite institutions to make all travel arrangements for their invited talks and conferences. This will include reserving flights, hotels, and rental cars as needed and then promptly filing all paperwork needed for reimbursement requests.


Ordering: The employee will assist the lab manager with requesting quotes and placing orders for lab related supplies and equipment. This includes maintaining a detailed record of orders and expenses for budgeting purposes. What It Takes to be Successful

Required:

• Mammalian cell culture experience
• Skill to pipet accurately
• Effective verbal and written communication skills in English.
• Previous laboratory experience, following basic laboratory procedures and practices.
• Functions well in a team environment.
• Availability to work occasional nights and weekends.
• Demonstrates ability to analyze problems/situations and formulate solutions.
• Ability to exercise good judgment in handling information to accurately record information, protocols, formulas and data.
• Experience with general lab equipment: pipets, scales, pH meters, centrifuges, power supplies, etc.
• Excellent interpersonal skills to relate easily and effectively with people within and outside the University, including both strong written and verbal communications.
• Demonstrated experience in participating in discussion related to research projects.
• Strong ability to multi-task, prioritize and follow up.
• Skill to use an iPhone, iPad, personal computer, computer software programs at the level of sophistication required for general office work.
• Experience with PCs and/or Macs. Knowledge of Outlook, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.
• Familiarity with the Internet and how to conduct searches.
• Proficient writing skills to prepare/compose/review a variety of materials with accuracy and completeness.
• Experience in assisting, testing and standardizing techniques.
• 1-3 yearsTwo years of laboratory experience or two years of college including courses in the natural, physical or social sciences and one year of laboratory experience, or an equivalent combination of education and experience; and knowledges and abilities essential to the successful performance of the duties assigned to the position.

Total Rewards

In addition to the salary range listed below, we offer a wealth of benefits to make working at UCI even more rewarding. These benefits may include medical insurance, sick and vacation time, retirement savings plans, and access to a number of discounts and perks. Please utilize the links listed here to learn more about our compensation practices and benefits.

Conditions of Employment:

The University of California, Irvine (UCI) seeks to provide a safe and healthy environment for the entire UCI community. As part of this commitment, all applicants who accept an offer of employment must comply with the following conditions of employment:

• Background Check and Live Scan
• Employment Misconduct*
• Legal Right to work in the United States
• Vaccination Policies
• Smoking and Tobacco Policy
• Drug Free Environment

*Misconduct Disclosure Requirement: As a condition of employment, the final candidate who accepts a conditional offer of employment will be required to disclose if they have been subject to any final administrative or judicial decisions within the last seven years determining that they committed any misconduct; received notice of any allegations or are currently the subject of any administrative or disciplinary proceedings involving misconduct; have left a position after receiving notice of allegations or while under investigation in an administrative or disciplinary proceeding involving misconduct; or have filed an appeal of a finding of misconduct with a previous employer.

The following additional conditions may apply, some of which are dependent upon business unit or job specific requirements.

• California Child Abuse and Neglect Reporting Act
• E-Verify
• Pre-Placement Health Evaluation

Details of each policy may be reviewed by visiting the following page -

Closing Statement:

The University of California is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, protected veteran status, or other protected categories covered by the UC Anti-Discrimination Policy.


We are committed to attracting and retaining a diverse workforce along with honoring unique experiences, perspectives, and identities. Together, our community strives to create and maintain working and learning environments that are inclusive, equitable, and welcoming.


UCI provides reasonable accommodations for applicants with disabilities upon request. For more information, please contact Human Resources at View phone number on click.appcast.io or View email address on click.appcast.io.

Consideration for Work Authorization Sponsorship

Must be able to provide proof of work authorization