Laboratory Technician - Plant Biology Institute

At the Ellison Institute of Technology (EIT), we’re on a mission to translate scientific discovery into real world impact. We bring together visionary scientists, technologists, engineers, researchers, educators and innovators to tackle humanity’s greatest challenges in four transformative areas:

• Health, Medical Science & Generative Biology
• Food Security & Sustainable Agriculture
• Climate Change & Managing CO₂
• Artificial Intelligence & Robotics

This is ambitious work - work that demands curiosity, courage, and a relentless drive to make a difference. At EIT, you’ll join a community built on excellence, innovation, tenacity, trust, and collaboration, where bold ideas become real-world breakthroughs. Together, we push boundaries, embrace complexity, and create solutions to scale ideas from lab to society. Explore more at.

The Plant Biology Institute, headed by Professor Steve Kelly, is a key part of the Ellison Institute of Technology (EIT) Oxford. The institute aims to develop impactful and commercially sustainable solutions for improving global food production and planetary health through pioneering plant science research.

The Plant Biology Institute will unite world-class researchers who are focused on expanding the frontiers of plant science. Our research is focused on enhancing our ability to feed the planet while simultaneously improving the climate and ecosystem outcomes of food production. By embedding cutting-edge plant science research within an organisation that is focused on solving global challenges at scale, we aim to accelerate the timeline from discovery to global impact.

• Improved plant productivity, both indoors and outside.
• Reduced reliance on inputs including water, fertilisers, pesticides, and herbicides.
• Novel decarbonised plant-based production platforms for food and medicines.
• Advanced technologies that speed up discovery and deployment in plants.

Researchers will have access to state-of-the‑art laboratory and plant growth facilities and have opportunities to collaborate with experts at the forefront of research on AI, automation, and generative biology across the EIT ecosystem. They will also work with global leaders in market development, commercialisation, and impact creation. The Plant Biology Institute has long‑term substantial funding to support the unique scale and ambition of its vision.

The Ellison Institute of Technology (EIT) is seeking a detail‑oriented and proactive Laboratory Technician to provide essential laboratory and experimental support within its innovative Plant Sciences research programmes.

This role involves hands‑on responsibility for cultivating experimental plants, preparing reagents, and supporting a range of molecular biology, tissue culture, and microbial techniques. The successful candidate will assist with data collection, maintain accurate records, and uphold rigorous laboratory safety and maintenance standards. With responsibilities spanning inventory management, equipment upkeep, and sample handling, this position is integral to the smooth operation of research workflows and the delivery of high‑quality scientific outcomes.

Ideal candidates will bring technical competence, strong organisational skills, and a collaborative mindset to support breakthrough research aligned with EIT’s mission.

• Grow and maintain experimental plants under controlled conditions (growth chambers).
• Prepare reagents, buffers and transformation constructs as required.
• Support Agrobacterium-mediated transformation.
• Prepare plant and microbial samples, including culture media, inoculations, antibiotics, and controlled environment setups.
• Support biochemical analyses, including protein extraction and purification, protein quantification, SDS–PAGE, immunodetection techniques (e.g., Western Blot), plate‑reader assays.
• Maintain and propagate tissue culture materials under sterile conditions. Assist in the transformation of plant tissues.
• Assist in the culture and maintenance of plant or microbial cells in a variety of systems. Support upstream and downstream processing…