Parkinson’s Research Ventures Associate

Invest in Equity; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 60,000 - 90,000; Full time

Job summary

Parkinson’s Research Ventures seeks an Associate with expertise in evaluating neurobiological pathways to support novel Parkinson’s therapies. You will scout projects, manage a funded portfolio, and liaise with external partners and the Parkinson’s community.

The role is hybrid with in-person days determined by team activity, aiming for regular collaboration and milestone-driven progress.

Qualifications

• PhD or equivalent with 5+ years in academic, biotech or industry settings.
• Strong understanding of neurobiological signaling in disease, especially Parkinson’s.
• Experience with drug discovery principles and assay development.

Responsibilities

• Scout and evaluate new project proposals for Parkinson’s therapies.
• Manage a funded portfolio and liaise with external partners.
• Interact with people living with Parkinson’s to inform projects.
• Provide expert scientific and strategic input at steering committees.
• Lead cross-functional teams from initiation to milestones.

Skills

Neuroscience

Drug discovery

Project management

Scientific communication

Education

Ph.D./M.D./D.Phil. in neuroscience or related field

Tools

In vitro assays

Job description

Parkinson's Research Ventures are looking to recruit an Associate with expertise in evaluating neurobiological pathways and de-risking therapeutic hypotheses to support the development of novel therapies for Parkinson’s. The ideal candidate will have a strong background in CNS pathophysiology and signalling and experience working across different therapeutic modalities, including ideally one or more of biologics, gene therapy or nucleotide therapy.

About the role

Parkinson’s Research Ventures aims to accelerate the development of new therapies for Parkinson’s, based on the needs and priorities of people living with Parkinson’s.

In this role, you will collaborate with the multi-disciplinary Parkinson’s Research Ventures team to scout for and evaluate new project proposals, manage their funded portfolio, and liaise with external partners and the Parkinson’s community.

What you’ll do

• Keep up to date with current Parkinson’s therapeutic research with views on current targets, modalities and mechanisms and identify new strategically relevant proposals for evaluation
• Evaluate target validation and pathway engagement and assess feasibility of potential Parkinson’s therapeutics.
• Undertake broader scientific and technical due diligence to critically assess external project proposals
• Interact with people with Parkinson’s and involve them in projects in order to increase the opportunities to deliver new drugs that meet unmet medical needs
• Act as the contact on specific projects and work with external partners to ensure delivery against milestones.
• Participate in joint steering committees and other advisory meetings, providing expert scientific and strategic insight

What you’ll bring

• Doctoral degree (Ph.D., M.D., D.Phil.) in neuroscience, cell biology, or a related field with 5+ years of relevant experience in an academic, biotech or industry setting.
• A strong understanding of neurobiological signalling and how these are disrupted in disease, ideally Parkinson’s.
• Expert knowledge of drug discovery principles and practices including experience of assay development and in vitro biochemical and cellular techniques.
• Experience in relation to development of one or more modalities including biologics, gene therapy or nucleotide therapy for neuroscience indications is desired.
• Excellent communication skills and the ability to present complex information in suitable formats for scientific and lay audiences
• Experience of project management and leadership skills, including cross-functional teams, from initiation to completion/review

This role is hybrid and your in person working depends on your team agreement, requirements of the role and led by activity based principles. The in person/office attendance expectation for this role will be a minimum on average 2 days per week with flexibility.

Interviews for this role will be held on 23 July 20026.