Associate Principal Scientist, Upstream Process Development

Merck & Co.; Rahway (NJ); On-site; USD 142,000 - 224,000; Full time

Job summary

Merck & Co. in Rahway, NJ seeks an Associate Principal Scientist to lead upstream process development for biologics. You will drive cell culture process design, optimization, and tech transfer to clinical and commercial sites, collaborating across disciplines to ensure robust, scalable manufacturing solutions.

You will mentor staff, oversee DOE and data analyses, and contribute to regulatory filings while advancing bioreactor technologies and efficiency gains.

Qualifications

• PhD with 4+ years or MS with 8+ years in chemical engineering, bioengineering, biological engineering, or related field.
• Hands-on mammalian cell culture experience.
• Knowledge of CHO biology, metabolism, and large-scale recombinant protein production systems.
• Experience with design of experiments and multivariate data analysis (e.g., JMP, SIMCA).
• Experience with bioreactors scale-up and technology transfer to GMP manufacturing sites.

Responsibilities

• Lead upstream process development of first-in-human and commercial processes to develop high-yield, robust, scalable cell culture processes.
• Oversee process development, characterization, and regulatory filing activities to support PPQs and BLAs.
• Collaborate with Discovery, Cell Line, Downstream Process Development, Analytical Sciences, and Manufacturing to develop integrated process solutions.
• Advance upstream platform processes through improvement initiatives to increase efficiency and reduce costs.
• Engage with academia, industry partners, and vendors to drive development and adoption of new process technologies.
• Stay current with external literature and publish findings; pursue patenting strategies.

Skills

Bioreactors

Mammalian Cell Culture

Process Development

Cell Culture Techniques

Molecular Biology

Statistical Methods

Education

PhD or MSc in chemical/biological engineering

Tools

SIMCA

JMP

Job description

Job Description

The Biologics Process Research & Development organization within our Research & Development Division is responsible for developing the drug substance manufacturing processes for our Company's biologics pipeline. We work closely with colleagues in Discovery, Pre-clinical and Early Development to rapidly develop manufacturing processes for diverse biotherapeutics and efficiently manufacture material to supply clinical trials. We are also responsible for late-stage process development and process characterization to prepare for commercial manufacturing.- We work with our partners in our Company Manufacturing Division to commercialize and launch new products.

We are seeking a highly motivated and energetic individual to join our team as an Associate Principal Scientist. In this role, a successful candidate will work closely with a highly motivated team of Scientists and Engineers in the Upstream Process Development area and contribute to CMC development of our company's pipeline, playing an active role in the design, development, and optimization of cell culture processes and the transfer of processes to clinical and commercial manufacturing sites. They must have effective organizational and multi-tasking skills, demonstrated excellent scientific leadership in Upstream process development, and superior written and oral communications abilities. Evidence of strong cross-functional collaboration, significant external presence with scientific excellence, and interest and abilities for mentoring junior staff are also expected.

Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

• Participates in and/or leads upstream process development of first-in-human and commercial processes by efficiently developing high yield, robust, and scalable cell culture processes.
• Responsible for process development, process characterization, and regulatory filing activities to ensure a smooth and clear path to successful PPQs and BLAs for the company's pipeline.
• Partner with colleagues in Discovery, Cell Line, Downstream Process Development, Analytical Sciences, and Manufacturing to develop integrated clinical and commercial process and manufacturing solutions that achieve quality by design targets with robust control strategies.
• Advancing the upstream platform processes through creative process improvement initiatives to increase operational efficiency and reduce costs.
• Collaborate with academia, industry partners, and vendors to drive development, innovation, and adoption of new process technologies.
• Keep current -with the external literature environment; actively present and publish externally and pursue patenting strategies.

Minimum Education Requirements:

• Ph.D. with 4+ years' experience or Master's with 8+ years' experience in chemical engineering, Bioengineering, Biological Engineering, or a related field

Required Experience and Skills:

• Technical background and hands‑on experience with mammalian cell culture and fed‑batch processes to produce recombinant proteins.
• Scientific understanding and working knowledge of CHO cell biology, metabolism, cell culture media and engineering principles for large scale recombinant protein production systems.
• Working knowledge of statistical methods (design of experiment, multivariate data analysis) and tools (SIMCA, JMP, etc.).
• Understanding of cell culture bioreactors including microbioreactors, bench‑scale and pilot‑scale bioreactors, and bioreactor scale‑up principles from laboratory to large scale.
• Proven track record of accomplishments in upstream process and technology development with a strong scientific publication and presentation track record.
• Ability to direct the planning, execution, analysis, and documentation of all stages of cell culture process development.
• Plan, execute, analyze, and communicate complex and critical data in a highly organized manner.
• Excellent verbal, written communication, and interpersonal skills.
• Ability to work effectively in cross‑functional and matrixed team environment; collaborate with both internal and external partners including vendors.
• Demonstrated ability for taking initiative, creativity, and innovation in problem solving.
• Productivity and efficiency working in the laboratory.
• Ability to deliver complex objective under aggressive timelines.
• Proficiency in Bioreactor simulation and modeling.

Preferred Experience and Skills:

• Experience with cell culture media development.
• Experience with high throughput microbioreactor systems and advanced in situ analytics for process monitoring and control.
• Experience with state‑of‑the‑art cell culture processes including intensified inoculum/fed‑batch and perfusion process development.
• Background in data science approaches related to cell culture and predictive modeling, e.g. metabolic flux (MFA) analysis, omics, machine learning; computational fluid dynamics, and experience integrating PAT efforts.
• Experience with late‑stage commercial process development, technology transfer, scale‑down model qualification, and process characterization.
• Knowledge of biologics CMC development cycle and scale‑up/down in addition to tech transfer to GMP manufacturing site.

Required Skills:

Biological Engineering, Biological Engineering, Biologics, Bioreactors, Biotherapeutics, Cell Biology, Cell Culture Bioreactors, Cell Culture Techniques, Cell Line Development, Chemical Engineering, CMC Development, Downstream Process Development, Drug Delivery Technology, Drug Development, Expression Vectors, Mammalian Cell Culture, Molecular Biology, Patentability, Pharmaceutical Formulations, Pharmaceutical Process Development, Physical Characterization, Process Characterization, Process Development (PD), Recombinant Protein Production, Recombinant Proteins {+ 1 more}

US and Puerto Rico Residents Only:

Our company is committed to inclusion, ensuring that candidates can engage in a hiring process that exhibits their true capabilities. Please click here if you need an accommodation during the application or hiring process.

As an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer, we provide equal opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, age, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, disability status, or other applicable legally protected characteristics.--As a federal contractor, we comply with all affirmative action requirements for protected veterans and individuals with disabilities.- For more information about personal rights under the U.S. Equal Opportunity Employment laws, visit:

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We are proud to be a company that embraces the value of bringing together, talented, and committed people with diverse experiences, perspectives, skills and backgrounds. The fastest way to breakthrough innovation is when people with diverse ideas, broad experiences, backgrounds, and skills come together in an inclusive environment. We encourage our colleagues to respectfully challenge one another's thinking and approach problems collectively.

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The primary location for this posting is:

USA - New Jersey - Rahway

Where required by law, the compensation range for this role is provided below.

The salary range for the primary location of this role is:

$142,400.00 - $224,100.00

This range reflects the Company's reasonable expectation of the base salary applicable to this role at the time of posting. An employee's position within the salary range will be based on several factors including, but not limited to relevant education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, geographic location, government requirements, and business or organizational needs. The successful candidate will be eligible for annual bonus and long-term incentive, if applicable.

We offer a comprehensive package of benefits. Available benefits include medical, dental, vision healthcare and other insurance benefits (for employee and family), retirement benefits, including 401(k), paid holidays, vacation, and compassionate and sick days. More information about benefits is available at https://jobs.merck.com/us/en/compensation-and-benefits .

Additional location(s):

Please note the salary range above applies to the Primary Location of the position. Where a role has other listed locations, different compensation guidelines may apply. You may find the salary ranges for additional locations below. If the salary range is not listed for the location you are applying to, our Talent Acquisition team will provide further information to you relevant to your location.

San Francisco Residents Only:

-We will consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records for employment in compliance with the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance

Los Angeles Residents Only:

-We will consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable state and local laws, including the City of Los Angeles' Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance

Search Firm Representatives Please Read Carefully-

Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA, also known as Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC, Rahway, NJ, USA, does not accept unsolicited assistance from search firms for employment opportunities. All CVs / resumes submitted by search firms to any employee at our company without a valid written search agreement in place for this position will be deemed the sole property of our company. -No fee will be paid in the event a candidate is hired by our company as a result of an agency referral where no pre-existing agreement is in place. Where agency agreements are in place, introductions are position specific. Please, no phone calls or emails.-

Employee Status:

Regular

Relocation:

Domestic

VISA Sponsorship:

Yes

Travel Requirements:

10%

Flexible Work Arrangements:

Not Applicable

Shift:

Not Indicated

Valid Driving License:

No

Hazardous Material(s):

n/a

Job Posting End Date:

10/31/2026

*A job posting is effective until 11:59:59PM on the day BEFORE -the listed job posting end date. Please ensure you apply to a job posting no later than the day BEFORE the job posting end date.

Requisition ID:

R423492