"Senior Research Fellow"

Job Description:

• Queensland Alliance for Agriculture and Food Innovation | Centre for Crop Science
• Full-time fixed-term position for up to 5 years
• Base salary will be in the range $143,099.52 - $164,748.70 + 17% Superannuation (Academic Level C)
• Based at our St Lucia Campus

About This Opportunity

We are looking for a Senior Research Fellow to lead and contribute to high-impact programs in crop genomics and genetic improvement, with a strong focus on cereal crop genomes. You will bring deep genomics expertise to drive gene discovery and develop innovative genomics tools that support researchers and public and private plant breeding programs.

Working in a collaborative, multidisciplinary environment, you will play a key role in the UQ–GRDC Strategic Sorghum Alliance and contribute to initiatives in predictive breeding and genome editing across sorghum, wheat, barley, and selected pulse crops. The role offers opportunities to shape independent research, supervise and mentor students, and provide leadership that delivers real-world agricultural impact.

Key responsibilities will include:

Research

• Lead and deliver high-impact research in crop genomics and genetics, with a focus on cereal and pulse crops relevant to Queensland, applying advanced approaches such as whole-genome sequencing, predictive breeding, and genomics-enabled crop improvement.
• Publish in high-quality journals, present at national and international forums, secure competitive research funding, translate outcomes into practice, and build strong partnerships with industry, government, and producers.

Supervision and Researcher Development

• Supervise HDR students and lead research staff, providing mentoring, performance feedback, training, and support to foster capability development, effective teamwork, and high research standards.

Citizenship and Service

• Contribute academic leadership through mentoring, multidisciplinary collaboration, committee and administrative service, partnership development, and active participation in University life, while upholding University values.

Teaching

• Contribute to undergraduate and postgraduate teaching where required, achieving high teaching quality and continuously improving teaching practice in response to student feedback.

This is a research focused position. Further information can be found by viewing UQ’s Criteria for Academic Performance.

About You

• A PhD in agricultural science, crop science, biological sciences, genetics and genomics or similar.
• Significant post-PhD experience within the grains industry with established trusted networks is desirable.
• Expertise in quantitative genetics and predictive breeding, preferably in grain crops. Working in teams to understand and harness genotype x environment x management interactions.
• Competency in bioinformatics and computational biology, including the handling of large-scale genomic datasets.
• Expertise in the evaluation of novel predictive genomics methods, and experience with whole genome assembly, annotation and comparative genomics, including pan-genomes.
• A strong track record of independent and collaborative research, including peer-reviewed publications.
• Demonstrated success in securing research funding and delivering research projects on time and within budget.
• Demonstrated ability to supervise postgraduate research students and mentor early-career researchers.
• Proven ability to engage with industry partners, government agencies, and producers to deliver impactful research.
• Strong leadership and teamwork skills, with experience contributing to multidisciplinary research programs.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to communicate research outcomes to diverse audiences.

Questions?

For more information about this opportunity, please contact Prof Ian Godwin, Director Centre for Crop Science i.godwin@uq.edu.au.

For application inquiries, please reach out to the Talent Acquisition team at talent@uq.edu.au, stating the job reference number (R-60195) in the subject line.

Want to Apply?

We welcome applications from all individuals and are committed to an inclusive and accessible recruitment process. To be considered, please ensure you upload:

• Resume
• Cover letter
• Responses to the ‘About You’ section

Other Information

Applications close Monday March 2nd at 11.00pm AEST (R-60195). Please note that interviews have been tentatively scheduled for the week commencing 16 March 2026.

Posted: 31/01/2026