CSIRO Winanga-y Postdoctoral Fellowship in Crops - New platform technology for plant oil production

Acknowledgement of Country 

CSIRO acknowledges the Traditional Owners of the land, sea and waters, of the area that we live and work on across Australia. We acknowledge their continuing connection to their culture and pay our respects to their Elders past and present. View our vision towards reconciliation. 

Role highlights

• Contribute to research that will pioneer next-generation plant oil technologies
• Work with world-leading scientists on research driving global impact
• Join CSIRO – Australia’s leading scientific research organisation!

About CSIRO

As Australia's national science agency, CSIRO is solving the greatest challenges through innovative science and technology. Many of our iconic innovations were once considered impossible until someone, just like you, joined us and took on the challenge.

Visit CSIRO.au for more information.

The opportunity 

We are thrilled to be able to deliver on the commitment we made in our strategy to invest in frontier science through the CSIRO Agriculture & Food Winanga-y Postdoctoral Fellowship scheme. The word Winanga-y (pronounced win-na-gnay) is a cultural asset gifted by the Gomeroi Nation in Myall Vale to CSIRO's Agriculture and Food Research Unit to name the Postdoctoral Fellowship Scheme. Winanga-y means to understand, know, remember, and think.

CSIRO Early Research Career (CERC) Postdoctoral Fellowships provide opportunities to scientists and engineers who have completed their doctorate and have less than three years of relevant postdoctoral work experience. These fellowships aim to develop the next generation of future leaders of the innovation system.

The CSIRO Fellow will join the Lipid Engineering team and will play a key role in the development of innovative, next-generation platform technologies that enhance or modify plant oil biosynthesis. You will work alongside leading experts who have translated lipid engineering research into successful commercial products such as omega-3 canola oil and super high oleic safflower oil, and who have pioneered Biomass Oil technology — enabling the accumulation of oil in plant leaves and stems.

You will collaborate closely with multi-disciplinary teams in synthetic biology, metabolic engineering, and crop biotechnology to deliver impactful outcomes for agriculture and industry.

Your high-level duties will include: 

• Developing novel pathway technologies and creative concepts to increase plant oil production.
• Designing and expression of complex genetic constructs in plant cells.
• Analysing lipid content and composition.
• Carrying out innovative, impactful quantitative fractionation improvement and importance to CSIRO that will, where possible, lead to novel and important scientific outcomes and publications in scientific journals.
• Utilising design thinking methodology to plan and prepare research proposals, and apply non-academic impact methodology to research projects

Role particulars

Location and office arrangements:  Canberra (Black Mountain), ACT (Ngunnawal Country)

Salary: AU$103,390 - AU$113,251 pa (pro rata for part-time), plus 15.4% superannuation

Tenure & work schedule: Specified term of 3 years, Full-time

Reference: 101134

As the successful candidate, you will bring:

Essential criteria 

• A doctorate (or will shortly satisfy the requirements of a PhD). The doctorate must be in a relevant discipline area, such as plant molecular biology, synthetic biology or biochemistry. Please note: To be eligible for this role you must have no more than 3 years (full-time equivalent) of relevant research experience.
• Demonstrated skills in molecular biology including vector design, cloning and Golden Gate assembly.
• A sound understanding of lipid metabolism.

• High level written and oral communication skills with the ability to represent the research team effectively internally and externally, including the presentation of research outcomes at national and international conferences.

CSIRO is an Equal Opportunity employer working hard to recruit world-class talent that represents the diversity across our society.  As part of our commitment to equitable employment outcomes for under-represented groups, preference will be given to Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people who meet the role criteria.  CSIRO’s Conscious Inclusion practices are intended to constitute a special/equal opportunity/affirmative measure under section 8(1) of the Racial Discrimination Act 1975 (Cth).

For full details about this role, and other criteria, please review the Position Description.

Setting you up for success

We are committed to providing a recruitment process that is fair, equitable and accessible to everyone. We recognise that it may be helpful for us to adjust our process to make it equitable for your individual situation. Please contact careers.online@csiro.au and let us know how we can support you.  

Life at CSIRO and flexible work arrangements

We work flexibly at CSIRO, offering a range of options for how, when and where you work. We can discuss flexible work arrangements with you during the recruitment process. CSIRO also offers a range of leave entitlements, benefits and career development opportunities. To find out more, visit Careers at CSIRO.

Inclusion and belonging

Solving Australia's greatest challenges takes a diversity of minds and lived experiences. We know diverse teams are more effective and deliver more innovative outcomes. As an equal employment opportunity organisation, we are committed to creating diverse and inclusive teams where people feel they belong. We recognise true diversity encompasses all ages, abilities, cultures, faiths, levels of education, genders, sexualities, diversity of thought and much more. We focus on hiring people who share our values of People First, Further Together, Making it Real and Trusted.

CSIRO holds Gold Status for the Australian Workplace Equality Index for LGBTQIA+ inclusion, and a Science in Australia Gender Equity Bronze Award.

Eligibility 

Applications for this position are open to Australian/New Zealand Citizens, Australian Permanent Residents or you must either hold, or be able to obtain, a valid working visa for the duration of the specified term.

Appointment to this role is subject to provision of a national police check and may be subject to other security/medical/character requirements.

Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander candidates being considered for the role under CSIRO’s Conscious Inclusion Practices may be required to provide evidence to confirm that they are an Aboriginal and/or Torres Strait Islander person.

Child safety 

CSIRO is committed to the safety and wellbeing of all children and young people involved in our activities and programs. View our Child Safe Policy. 

How to apply 

Please apply online and submit a cover letter (maximum 2 pages) and CV that best demonstrates your motivation and ability to meet the essential requirements of this role.

Applications close 

30 January 2026, 11:00pm AEDT

We strongly encourage you to apply early, as the selection panel will be reviewing applications as they come in. CSIRO reserves the right to withdraw this ad prior to the closing date, if required.