Lead Scientist, Obesity & Cardiometabolic Drug Discovery

Amgen; Thousand Oaks (CA); On-site; USD 170,000 - 210,000; Full time

Job summary

Amgen seeks a Principal Scientist to lead obesity and cardiometabolic disease discovery. You will drive translational pharmacology strategies, integrate in vitro and in vivo data, and guide candidate selection across multidisciplinary teams.

You will shape scientific strategy, mentor researchers, and contribute to publications while collaborating with biology, pharmacology, and clinical development to advance transformative therapies for patients.

Qualifications

• PhD, PharmD, or MD with relevant post-doc/experience; Master’s with 5+ years; or Bachelor’s with 7+ years in drug discovery.
• Preferred: PhD in Pharmacology, Physiology, Endocrinology, or related field with 5+ years in drug discovery.
• Strong expertise in GPCR biology, pharmacology, and signaling; including functional signaling assays and biomarker analyses.
• Experience mentoring scientists and leading cross-functional teams in fast-paced discovery.

Responsibilities

• Provide scientific leadership for obesity drug discovery from target identification to candidate selection.
• Develop translational pharmacology strategies to evaluate mechanisms and optimize candidates.
• Oversee in vitro and in vivo pharmacology studies (PK/PD, biomarker work).
• Lead cross-functional scientific discussions and influence program direction with data interpretation.
• Apply innovative pharmacology approaches to advance GPCR-targeted discovery.
• Mentor scientists and foster collaboration across biology, pharmacology, toxicology, and clinical development.
• Present findings to project teams and senior leadership; contribute to publications and strategy.

Skills

GPCR biology

in vitro pharmacology

in vivo pharmacology

data interpretation

scientific leadership

mentoring scientists

cross-functional collaboration

publications

Education

PhD

PharmD

MD with 2 years pharma/biotech experience

Master’s degree with 5 years experience

Bachelor’s degree with 7 years experience

Job description

Amgen seeks a Principal Scientist to lead obesity and cardiometabolic disease discovery. You will drive translational pharmacology strategies, integrate in vitro and in vivo data, and guide candidate selection across multidisciplinary teams.

You will shape scientific strategy, mentor researchers, and contribute to publications while collaborating with biology, pharmacology, and clinical development to advance transformative therapies for patients.