Laboratory Coordinator in Scarborough

Under the direction of the Undergraduate Teaching Laboratory Manager and relevant faculty, the Laboratory Coordinator will provide teaching and technical support services for undergraduate laboratory courses offered at the UTSC campus and the Toronto Zoo, including those focused in the disciplines of microbiology and biochemistry. The position will liaise with faculty, teaching assistants, laboratory technicians and undergraduate students to ensure the smooth delivery of high‑quality laboratory exercises.

The role includes:

• Ensuring cleanliness of the laboratories and teaching preparation rooms
• Collecting and submitting laboratory grades
• Organizing and maintaining course content on a learning management system
• Troubleshooting technical problems
• Identifying errors and finding solutions with experimental procedures
• Maintaining and procuring laboratory equipment
• Ordering, tracking usage and maintaining inventory of supplies and specimens
• Providing technical support

The incumbent will also advise faculty on best practices in teaching and learning, as well as administrative processes and academic technologies, and support enrolled undergraduate students by coordinating with appropriate campus offices and the Toronto Zoo, responding to routine enquiries, disseminating pertinent information, and enforcing course policies.

Your responsibilities will include:

• Acting as the first point of contact for general enquiries and serving as a resource for others by providing guidance when necessary
• Organizing and maintaining course information on learning management system, including collecting, organizing, and submitting grades
• Supporting undergraduate students by coordinating with the Toronto Zoo, AccessAbility office, Academic Advising & Career Centre, and other campus and institutional offices
• Making recommendations based on best practices in teaching and learning in a laboratory environment
• Procuring, preparing, assembling and setting‑up material, equipment and supplies used in teaching and/or research labs
• Modifying experimental processes and implementing more efficient ways to conduct experiments
• Ensuring that the material needs of laboratory exercises and/or courses are available on schedule for use by teaching assistants and undergraduate students
• Applying established standards when cleaning lab, rooms and equipment and coordinating routine maintenance of lab equipment

Essential Qualifications:

• Bachelor's Degree in Biological Sciences or acceptable combination of equivalent experience
• Minimum four years of recent and related experience teaching biology lab courses or supporting biology teaching labs in a university environment or similar setting
• Minimum two years of experience preparing, assembling and setting‑up material, equipment and supplies used in teaching labs
• Demonstrated ability to work independently and to coordinate all aspects of an undergraduate teaching laboratory and experience with the administrative and technical aspect of lab work
• Knowledge of Microbiology and Biochemistry concepts and experiments
• Hands‑on experience with aseptic technique, protein purification and analysis, DNA purification and extraction, PCR, microscopy (compound), cell culture techniques, staining methods, bacterial transformation, microplate readers and micropipettes
• Experience working with large classes of undergraduate students and numerous teaching assistants
• Applicants are expected to show evidence of a commitment to equity, diversity, inclusion, and the promotion of a respectful and collegial learning and working environment
• Strong proficiency using Microsoft products (Outlook, Teams, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc.)
• Excellent verbal and written communication and organizational skills and have the ability to exercise sound judgment

Assets (Nonessential):

• Graduate degree in Biology considered a strong asset
• Experience with laboratory teaching in subject areas microbiology and biochemistry

To be successful in this role you will be:

• Adaptable
• Meticulous
• Organized
• Proactive
• Problem solver
• Self‑directed

Please note that this role requires some travel between our UTSC campus and the Toronto Zoo.

Lived Experience Statement: Candidates who are members of Indigenous, Black, racialized and 2SLGBTQ+ communities, persons with disabilities, and other equity deserving groups are encouraged to apply, and their lived experience shall be taken into consideration as applicable to the posted position.