Field Application Scientist – Cell Biology

Semarion Ltd; Cambridge; On-site; GBP 42,000 - 65,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid and flexible working

Share options

Private health insurance

30 days holiday

8% pension contributions

Job summary

Semarion Ltd. in Cambridge is seeking a Field Application Scientist to work with pharma, biotech and research customers, evaluating and expanding the use of the SemaCyte platform.

You will perform hands-on assay development and customer-facing support in our Cambridge laboratories, translating scientific questions into practical experiments and robust workflows while collaborating with Applications, Commercial and Engineering teams.

Qualifications

• Degree in cell biology, biology, pharmacology, or related field or equivalent experience.
• Good practical experience with mammalian cell culture and cell-based assays.
• Experience developing, optimizing or troubleshooting biological assays.
• Experience with imaging-based assays, microscopy or image analysis.
• Interest in working directly with customers and translating scientific requirements into practical workflows.
• Clear written and verbal scientific communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Understand customers' cell models, assays and objectives.
• Design and deliver SemaCyte demonstrations and customer evaluations.
• Develop, optimize and troubleshoot cell-based assays in Semarion labs.
• Help customers design experiments and integrate SemaCytes into workflows.
• Analyze data and communicate results and recommendations to customers and teams.
• Train and support customers as they adopt SemaCyte workflows.

Skills

Customer-facing science

Assay development

Mammalian cell culture

Image analysis

Education

Cell biology or related degree

Job description

We will begin reviewing applications on a rolling basis and may close the vacancy early if a suitable candidate is found. Early applications are encouraged.

Start Date

Flexible, most likely between November and January. We are happy to accommodate notice periods.

Location

Cambridge, with regular travel to customer sites primarily in the UK and Europe

The Role

Semarion is a dynamic, early-stage spin-out company developing a cutting-edge platform to improve how adherent cell assays are performed in drug discovery. Our proprietary SemaCyte® microcarrier technology combines advanced materials with cell biology to simplify, multiplex and automate cell-based assays.

As adoption of the SemaCyte platform grows, we are looking for a Field Application Scientist to work closely with our pharmaceutical, biotechnology and research customers to successfully evaluate, implement and expand the use of SemaCytes within their cell-based assay workflows.

This is a scientific and hands‑on role combining customer‑facing application support with assay development in our Cambridge laboratories. You will work with customers to understand their biological questions and existing workflows, design and execute SemaCyte evaluations, optimise cell‑based assays and help translate successful experiments into robust and scalable workflows.

You will act as an important scientific link between our customers and Semarion's Applications, Commercial, Product and Engineering teams. Insights gathered through customer projects will directly influence how we improve our technology, workflows and future applications.

The role would suit an experienced cell biologist or assay scientist who enjoys solving scientific problems collaboratively and would like to work more closely with customers. Previous experience in applications, customer‑facing science or the life‑science tools industry would be valuable, but is not essential.

About Semarion

Semarion is a spin‑out from the University of Cambridge transforming how adherent cell assays are performed in drug discovery. Our proprietary SemaCyte® microcarrier platform turns adherent cells into barcoded, automation‑friendly reagents, enabling scientists to multiplex cell models and generate substantially more biological data from existing assay infrastructure.

We combine advanced materials engineering with deep biological expertise to develop and commercialise our technology. We work with leading pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies to simplify cell model handling, improve assay consistency and enable new approaches to automated cell‑based screening.

We are currently in an exciting scale‑up phase, expanding both our platform capabilities and customer applications.

Your responsibilities in the role

• Work with customers to understand their cell models, assays, workflows and experimental objectives.
• Design and deliver SemaCyte demonstrations, feasibility studies and customer evaluations, both at Semarion and at customer sites.
• Develop, optimise and troubleshoot cell‑based assays and customer‑specific applications in Semarion's laboratories.
• Help customers design experiments and integrate SemaCytes into imaging, liquid handling and automated assay workflows.
• Analyse experimental data and communicate results and recommendations clearly to customers and colleagues.
• Train and support customers as they adopt SemaCyte workflows within their laboratories.
• Develop and improve application protocols, workflows, training materials and application notes.
• Capture customer feedback and application requirements and work with Semarion's Applications, Product, Engineering and Commercial teams to improve the platform.
• Contribute to internal assay development, platform validation and BioQC activities where appropriate.

What we are looking for

• A degree in cell biology, biological sciences, pharmacology, pharmaceutical sciences or a related discipline, or equivalent relevant experience.
• Good practical experience with mammalian cell culture and cell‑based assays.
• Experience developing, optimising or troubleshooting biological assays.
• Experience with imaging‑based assays, microscopy or image analysis.
• An understanding of experimental design, data analysis and scientific interpretation.
• An interest in working directly with customers and translating scientific requirements into practical experiments and workflows.
• Clear written and verbal scientific communication skills.
• The ability to organise and take ownership of projects while working collaboratively with colleagues and customers.
• Willingness to travel regularly to customer sites, primarily within the UK and Europe. Travel will be planned in advance wherever possible.

Experience in some of the following areas would be particularly useful, but we do not expect candidates to have experience in all of them:

• Field applications, application science, technical support or another customer‑facing scientific role.
• Pharmaceutical, biotechnology, CRO or life‑science tools environments.
• High‑content imaging or screening.
• Laboratory automation or automated liquid handling.
• Primary cells, stem cells or complex cellular models.
• Assay transfer or customer evaluation projects.
• Writing scientific protocols, application notes or training materials.

We recognise that candidates bring different combinations of experience and skills. If the role interests you and you believe your background could contribute to our team, we encourage you to apply.

Working at Semarion

At Semarion, we believe that a supportive, flexible and collaborative environment is important for both scientific progress and personal development. Our team is based at the Maxwell Centre on the West Cambridge Site and operates laboratory facilities at the University of Cambridge Department of Physics.

We offer a range of benefits including:

• Hybrid and flexible working
• Share options
• Private health insurance
• 30 days holiday
• 8% pension contributions

As part of a growing venture‑backed company, you will work closely with our founders, technical teams and customers. You will have real ownership of your work and the opportunity to help shape both the applications we develop and how we support customers as Semarion grows.

Semarion welcomes applications from people with different backgrounds and experiences. We are happy to discuss reasonable adjustments during the recruitment process.