Principal Scientist, Process Modeling, Digital Insights

MSD; Boston (MA); Hybrid; USD 173,000 - 273,000; Full time

Job summary

MSD is seeking a Principal Scientist to lead CFD and physics-based simulations for bioreactor scale-up in the DSCS Digital Technologies organization. You will mentor scientists, partner with engineers and experimentalists, and drive the adoption of first-principles modeling across drug substance development and manufacturing processes.

You will define engineering equivalence between development and manufacturing scales, oversee end-to-end modeling projects, and contribute to strategic roadmaps

Qualifications

• Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering or related field with industrial/pharma experience.
• MS in Chemical Engineering with substantial industrial experience preferred.
• BS in Chemical Engineering with extensive experience in pharma/process development.

Responsibilities

• Lead CFD and engineering simulations for bioreactor mixing and gas transfer.
• Design scale-down models to reproduce manufacturing-scale environments.
• Extend physics-based modeling to harvest and downstream processes.
• Own end-to-end modeling project execution from framing to validation.
• Support vessel/site characterization and scale-up strategies.
• Mentor junior scientists within Process Modeling & Analytics.
• Shape modeling roadmap and establish scalable validation standards.
• Collaborate across DSCS to translate model outputs into CMC decisions.

Skills

CFD expertise

Python scripting

Mass transfer

Process modeling

Scale-up experience

Education

Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering

M.S. in Chemical Engineering

B.S. in Chemical Engineering

Tools

M-Star CFD

ANSYS Fluent

STAR-CCM+

COMSOL

OpenFOAM

Job description

Job Description

Summary

We are seeking a Principal Scientist to join our Digital Insights team within the Development Sciences and Clinical Supply Digital Technologies organization (DDT). Digital is the multiplier that will allow DSCS to deliver better experiments faster, efficient filing and launch, more robust supply chains and higher-confidence decisions across the portfolio.

The DSCS Digital Technologies organization is responsible for the invention and application of new digital tools/workflows to support scientists across drug substance development, drug product development and analytical development. We aspire to embed digital technologies into the fabric of DSCS culture to drive transformational impact across the CMC space. In this Principal Scientist role, the successful candidate will apply first-principles engineering, computational fluid dynamics (CFD), and physics-based simulation to bring predictive rigor to scale-up across a multi-modality pipeline from small to large molecules, with a current focus on biologics. This role will serve as our senior technical authority on CFD and engineering simulation for drug substance development, with an emphasis on bioreactor scale-up/scale-down and other sensitive bioprocess unit operations. They will lead physics-based assessments of mixing (P/V, shear, pH gradients) and gassing (kLa, O2 distribution) to define engineering equivalence between scales and to inform scale-down model design.

The successful candidate will play a technical leadership role in establishing engineering simulation as a core capability across DSCS partnering deeply with experimentalists, process engineers, and DS technical leads to translate first-principles model outputs into actionable CMC decisions. As a senior member of the Process Modeling & Analytics team, they will also mentor junior scientists, shape the group’s modeling roadmap, and champion the disciplined use of physics-based simulation across the pipeline.

Responsibilities

• Lead CFD and engineering simulation of bioreactor mixing and gassing to characterize P/V, shear, mixing time, pH and component gradients, kLa, and gas gradients toward defining engineering equivalence between development and manufacturing scales.
• Design scale-down models that reproduce the critical hydrodynamic and mass-transfer environment of the manufacturing-scale bioreactor, in partnership with process development scientists.
• Extend physics-based modeling to other sensitive bioprocess unit operations, including harvest (centrifugation, depth filtration) and TFF (UF/DF, viral filtration), to quantify shear and hydrodynamic risk to product quality.
• Own end-to-end modeling project execution: problem framing, geometry and mesh strategy, solver setup, validation against experimental data, and clear communication of predictions and their limitations to cross-functional stakeholders.
• Support vessel and site characterization studies and standard workplans to support enterprise scale-up/scale-down strategy.
• Mentor junior scientists on the Process Modeling & Analytics team; grow their technical judgment in transport phenomena, CFD methodology, and simulation-based decision making.
• Shape the team’s modeling roadmap and establish practical standards for simulation workflows (case setup, HPC/cloud use, validation, reuse) that scale across the portfolio.
• Support engineering simulations extending from biologics to small-molecule organic drug substance unit operations (e.g., crystallization, reactor mixing) as pipeline needs require.

Education Minimum Requirement

• Ph.D. in Chemical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Bioengineering, Physics, Biology, Chemistry, Data Science or a closely-related field with at least 6 years of industrial/pharmaceutical or relevant experience.
• M.S. in Chemical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Bioengineering, Physics, Biology, Chemistry, Data Science or a closely-related field with at least 8 years of industrial/pharmaceutical or relevant experience.
• B.S. in Chemical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Bioengineering, Physics, Biology, Chemistry, Data Science or a closely-related field with at least 10 years of industrial/pharmaceutical or relevant experience.

Required Experience and Skills

• Chemical engineering training (or closely related) with deep grounding in transport phenomena, fluid mechanics, mixing theory, and gas–liquid mass transfer.
• Extensive hands-on CFD expertise using tools such as M-Star CFD, ANSYS Fluent, STAR-CCM+, COMSOL, or OpenFOAM—including geometry, meshing, solver setup, and post-processing for stirred-tank and gas–liquid systems.
• Demonstrated experience characterizing bioreactors at development and manufacturing scale: quantifying power input, tip speed, shear, mixing times, kLa, and gas hold-up, and connecting those outputs to scale-up decisions.
• Track record of designing scale-down models and defining engineering-equivalence criteria that hold up when a process moves between scales.
• Ability to validate simulations against experimental data and to articulate model credibility, sensitivities, and uncertainty to advise action and decision.
• Scientific leadership and mentorship experience; comfortable growing modeling capability in others rather than only doing the work personally.
• Strong scripting skills in Python (or MATLAB) for pre-/post-processing and workflow automation around commercial CFD tools.

Preferred Experience and Skills

• Direct experience in an industrial biologics setting (cell culture bioreactor scale-up, harvest, or TFF) as a process development scientist or process engineer
• Familiarity with the shear-sensitivity of biologics (cells, proteins) and how interfacial and hydrodynamic phenomena connect to product quality.
• Experience with single-use bioreactors and single-use downstream trains at industrial scale.
• Fluency with population balance modeling and/or multiphase methods (Eulerian–Eulerian, Eulerian–Lagrangian, VOF) as applied to bubbles, droplets, or particulates.
• Familiarity with small-molecule organic drug substance unit operations (e.g., crystallization, reactive systems, liquid-liquid mixing).
• Experience coupling CFD outputs to data-driven or reduced-order surrogates.
• Prior use of modeling and simulation in technology transfer, process characterization, or troubleshooting at scale.

Required Skills

Adaptability, Adaptability, Cell Culture Process Development, Cell Line Development, Chemical Engineering, Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD), Computer Simulations, Data Analysis, Engineering Leadership, Engineering Physics, High Performance Computing (HPC), Innovative Thinking, Leadership Mentoring, Materials Science, Model Development, Model Driven Design, Multiscale Modeling, Pharmaceutical Process Development, Process Engineering, Process Modeling, Process Simulation, Professional Collaboration, Professional Networking, Quality by Design, Simulation Modeling {+ 3 more}

US and Puerto Rico Residents Only

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The salary range for this role is

$173,200.00 - $272,600.00

This is the lowest to highest salary we in good faith believe we would pay for this role at the time of this 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 includes 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.

You can apply for this role through https://jobs.merck.com/us/en (or via the Workday Jobs Hub if you are a current employee). The application deadline for this position is stated on this posting.

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

Employee Status

Regular

Relocation

Domestic

Visa Sponsorship

No

Travel Requirements

10%

Flexible Work Arrangements

Hybrid

Shift

Not Indicated

Valid Driving License

No

Hazardous Material(s)

n/a

Job Posting End Date

09/30/2026

*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.