Postdoctoral Scholar-Fixed Term

MSU Careers Details • East Lansing, MI

2d • Onsite

About The Position

The Wang Laboratory at Michigan State University is seeking a highly motivated and technically accomplished Postdoctoral Scholar to drive cutting-edge research in soybean genetics and breeding. The successful candidate will apply multi-faceted approaches, causal variant discovery, and molecular breeding tools to advance understanding of host plant resistance in soybean towards white mold resistance and play significant role in soybean breeding program. This is a full-time position embedded in one of the nation's premier soybean genetics programs, offering opportunities for collaborative research, grant co-development, and scientific leadership.

Requirements

• Ph.D. in Plant Breeding and Genetics, Plant Pathology, or a closely related discipline.
• Demonstrated research experience in soybean genetics, genomics, molecular breeding, plant pathology, or quantitative genetics.
• Experience conducting genome-wide association studies (GWAS), quantitative trait locus (QTL) mapping, linkage analysis, genomic prediction, and/or population genetics analyses in crop plants.
• Experience evaluating soybean germplasm and breeding populations under greenhouse and field conditions for disease resistance and agronomic traits.
• At least two years of experience in working with white mold (Sclerotinia sclerotiorum) of soybeans.
• Demonstrated experience in molecular marker development, marker-assisted selection, and integration of genomic tools into plant breeding programs.
• Experience managing, integrating, and analyzing large-scale phenotypic, genotypic, and environmental datasets.
• Strong record of publishing research findings in peer-reviewed scientific journals.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including preparation of scientific manuscripts, grant proposals, technical reports, and conference presentations.
• Demonstrated ability to work effectively in multidisciplinary research teams while mentoring graduate and undergraduate students.

Nice To Haves

• Postdoctoral or professional research experience in soybean breeding, disease resistance genetics, or applied crop improvement.
• Knowledge of public soybean breeding programs and cultivar development pipelines.
• Experience conducting greenhouse inoculation assays, disease nurseries, and multi-location field evaluations.
• Experience implementing genomic selection, marker-assisted breeding, or genomic-assisted breeding strategies.
• Familiarity with soybean germplasm, elite breeding lines, and North American soybean industry.
• Experience preparing competitive grant proposals, annual progress reports, and project deliverables for federal agencies, commodity organizations, or industry partners.
• Experience collaborating with multidisciplinary teams including soybean breeders, plant pathologists, molecular geneticists, bioinformaticians, and statisticians.
• Prior experience collaborating with public breeding programs, USDA-ARS, commodity boards (e.g., Michigan Soybean Committee or United Soybean Board), or other agricultural research organizations.
• Experience presenting research at national and international scientific meetings and mentoring students or research personnel.

Responsibilities

• Design and execute large-scale genetic and genomic studies to identify loci associated with white mold (Sclerotinia sclerotiorum) resistance in soybean using genome-wide association studies (GWAS), quantitative trait locus (QTL) mapping, linkage analysis, and genomic prediction approaches.
• Evaluate diverse soybean germplasm, breeding populations, and advanced breeding lines under greenhouse and field conditions to identify novel sources of white mold resistance.
• Characterize candidate genes, structural genomic variants, and genomic regions contributing to physiological and genetic resistance to Sclerotinia sclerotiorum.
• Integrate phenotypic, genotypic, and environmental data to elucidate the genetic architecture and molecular mechanisms underlying white mold resistance.
• Conduct population genetics and diversity analyses to identify favorable alleles and breeding signatures for disease resistance across diverse soybean germplasm.
• Identify promising resistant soybean lines for release or use as parents for future crosses.
• Actively contribute to the Michigan State University Soybean Breeding and Genetics Program by supporting year-round field, greenhouse, and laboratory breeding operations.
• Assist with the development, advancement, and evaluation of breeding populations for disease resistance, seed quality, yield, agronomic performance, and abiotic stress tolerance.
• Coordinate and conduct hybridization, population development, seed increase, generation advancement, and selection of breeding lines in greenhouse and field environments.
• Plan and execute field trials, disease nurseries, greenhouse experiments, nursery establishment, plot maintenance, phenotypic evaluations, and harvest operations across multiple research locations.
• Collect, curate, and manage high-quality phenotypic and genotypic datasets to support breeding decisions, cultivar development, and genomic analyses.
• Collaborate with breeders, technicians, graduate students, and research associates to ensure the efficient execution of breeding, greenhouse, laboratory, and field research activities.
• Develop, optimize, and implement reliable greenhouse and field phenotyping protocols for screening soybean germplasm against Sclerotinia sclerotiorum.
• Develop and validate molecular markers associated with white mold resistance for marker-assisted selection and genomic-assisted breeding.
• Collaborate with soybean breeders to integrate genomic information and molecular markers into breeding pipelines for the development of improved cultivars.
• Support the advancement of elite breeding lines possessing enhanced white mold resistance while maintaining superior yield, seed quality, and agronomic performance.
• Publish high-impact research findings in peer-reviewed journals and present results at national and international scientific conferences.
• Prepare and contribute to competitive grant proposals, concept notes, letters of support, and funding applications for federal agencies, commodity organizations, industry partners, and other extramural funding programs.
• Prepare annual and final technical progress reports, research summaries, and project deliverables for funding agencies, commodity boards, and collaborating organizations, ensuring timely reporting of project milestones, research outcomes, and project impacts.
• Assist in project planning, budgeting, timeline development, and research coordination to support the successful implementation of externally funded research programs.
• Mentor graduate and undergraduate students in disease phenotyping, molecular breeding, genomics, quantitative genetics, bioinformatics, and data analysis.
• Collaborate with multidisciplinary teams including plant breeders, plant pathologists, molecular geneticists, bioinformaticians, statisticians, commodity organizations, industry partners, and federal agencies to accelerate the development and deployment of improved soybean cultivars with enhanced white mold resistance, seed quality, and agronomic performance.

Benefits

• Michigan State University is committed to providing a safe environment for its students, faculty, and staff in support of its educational mission.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Entry Level
• Education Level: Ph.D. or professional degree