Oyster Technician

About the role

• Job Posting Title: Oyster Technician
• Hiring Department: Department of Marine Science
• Position Open To: All Applicants
• Weekly Scheduled Hours: 40
• FLSA Status: Exempt from FLSA
• Earliest Start Date: Immediately
• Position Duration: Expected to Continue Until Oct 31, 2028
• Location: PORT ARANSAS, TX

Job Details

General Notes

This position is located in Port Aransas, Tx. Only applicants authorized to work in the US will be considered.

Purpose

The Marine Science Institute (MSI) at The University of Texas at Austin invites applications for two lab technician positions in the University of Texas Oyster Mariculture Laboratory. These positions will play a central role in the daily operations of oyster mariculture including algal feed production, oyster broodstock conditioning and husbandry, larval culture, and spat nursery production. The successful candidate will work under the direction of the Texas Oyster Mariculture Lab manager and Fisheries and Mariculture Laboratory (FAML) Director.

Responsibilities

• Maintain and optimize live algal cultures to support broodstock and larval production.
• Maintain and manage water quality and operations of oyster broodstock.
• Manage day-to-day oyster hatchery operations, including conditioning, spawning, larval rearing, settlement, and nursery grow-out.
• Perform collection of native oysters for use as broodstock.
• Contribute to data management, compliance, and progress reporting for the shellfish research program.

Required Qualifications

• BSc. in marine science, aquaculture, fisheries, biology, or a closely related field, or equivalent practical experience in lieu of a formal degree, and at least two years of experience in shellfish aquaculture.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience with algal culture systems, particularly in relation to oyster feed production.
• Experience with oyster/shellfish husbandry and larval rearing.
• Experience with flow-through and/or recirculating aquaculture systems (RAS)
• Experience with disease management and biosecurity in shellfish hatcheries

Salary

• $42,000+

Working Conditions

• Will work in an aquaculture laboratory with shellfish, primarily oysters.
• Will work with seawater algae cultures.
• May work around biohazards (i.e. BSL1, bacterial cultures)
• May work outdoors in all weather conditions
• Will conduct fieldwork in small boats for oyster broodstock collections.
• May work around standard office conditions.
• May work with chemicals, such as those used in water quality testing and treatment of diseases
• May work around electrical and mechanical hazards
• Repetitive use of a keyboard at a workstation.
• Use of manual dexterity.
• Lifting and moving.

Required Materials

• Resume/CV
• 3 work references with their contact information; at least one reference should be from a supervisor
• Letter of interest

Additional information

Important for applicants who are NOT current university employees or contingent workers: You will be prompted to submit your resume the first time you apply, then you will be provided an option to upload a new Resume for subsequent applications. Any additional Required Materials (letter of interest, references, etc.) will be uploaded in the Application Questions section; you will be able to multi-select additional files. Before submitting your online job application, ensure that ALL Required Materials have been uploaded. Once your job application has been submitted, you cannot make changes.

Important for Current university employees and contingent workers: As a current university employee or contingent worker, you MUST apply within Workday by searching for Find UT Jobs. If you are a current University employee, log-in to Workday, navigate to your Worker Profile, click the Career link in the left hand navigation menu and then update the sections in your Professional Profile before you apply.

This information will be pulled in to your application. The application is one page and you will be prompted to upload your resume. In addition, you must respond to the application questions presented to upload any additional Required Materials (letter of interest, references, etc.) that were noted above.

Employment Eligibility

Regular staff who have been employed in their current position for the last six continuous months are eligible for openings being recruited for through University-Wide or Open Recruiting, to include both promotional opportunities and lateral transfers. Staff who are promotion/transfer eligible may apply for positions without supervisor approval.

Retirement Plan Eligibility

The retirement plan for this position is Teacher Retirement System of Texas (TRS), subject to the position being at least 20 hours per week and at least 135 days in length.

Pay Transparency

The University of Texas at Austin will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant.

However, employees who have access to the compensation information of other employees or applicants as a part of their essential job functions cannot disclose the pay of other employees or applicants to individuals who do not otherwise have access to compensation information, unless the disclosure is (a) in response to a formal complaint or charge, (b) in furtherance of an investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, including an investigation conducted by the employer, or (c) consistent with the contractor's legal duty to furnish information.

Employment Eligibility Verification

If hired, you will be required to complete the federal Employment Eligibility Verification I-9 form. You will be required to present acceptable and original documents to prove your identity and authorization to work in the United States. Documents need to be presented no later than the third day of employment. Failure to do so will result in loss of employment at the university.