Scientist, Molecular Discovery

Merck Merck · Pharma · MA

Scientist role at Merck focused on molecular discovery, specifically optimizing next-generation sequencing for in vitro display campaigns to discover and engineer therapeutic candidates. Requires strong molecular biology and NGS understanding, with collaboration across biology, protein engineering, and data science teams.

What you'd actually do

  1. Design and execute _in vitro _antibody_ _display campaigns for hit discovery and lead optimization to support the discovery and development of therapeutic candidates
  2. Leverage knowledge of next-generation sequencing (NGS) technology to generate and evaluate data from display campaigns in support of discovery and lead optimization workflows
  3. Enable continuous NGS process improvements and platform development for display technologies such as library preparation, library QC, run optimization, and data analysis
  4. Serve as a functional area representative on program teams
  5. Collaborate across multiple functional areas to advance therapeutic candidates

Skills

Required

  • molecular biology techniques
  • next-generation sequencing (NGS)
  • multi-disciplinary collaborative team environment
  • analytical and problem-solving skills
  • communication and organizational skills

Nice to have

  • NGS library preparation
  • data generation
  • analysis
  • Illumina sequencing instruments
  • short- or long-read sequencing
  • single cell sequencing technologies
  • in-vitro display platforms (yeast, phage, mRNA)
  • laboratory automation
  • antibody discovery workflows

What the JD emphasized

  • Good communication skills and the ability to present scientific data to multi-functional teams are critical.