Senior Scientist, Viral Upstream Process Development (Philadelphia, PA)

Cedent; Philadelphia (Philadelphia County); On-site; USD 100,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

A biotechnology firm located in Philadelphia is seeking a Senior Scientist to lead viral upstream process development. Responsibilities include managing laboratory operations, conducting experiments, and authoring technical documents necessary for regulatory submissions. The ideal candidate holds a relevant advanced degree and possesses extensive experience in viral processing and GMP guidelines. This position offers collaboration opportunities across multiple teams and a chance to contribute significantly to product development and commercialization.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s, Master’s, or Ph.D. in chemical engineering, bioengineering, or related discipline.
• Hands-on experience with viral vector upstream processing.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office and data analysis tools.

Responsibilities

• Contribute to process development capabilities and collaborate with teams.
• Develop bench scale suspension culture processes.
• Maintain lab equipment and manage inventory.

Skills

Hands-on experience with viral vector upstream processing

Strong scientific reasoning

Excellent interpersonal communication skills

Proficiency in Microsoft Office

Working knowledge of GMP guidelines

Education

Bachelor’s Degree in relevant field (10 years experience) or Master’s (8 years) or Ph.D. (5 years)

Tools

Microsoft Word

Microsoft Excel

Data analysis software (JMP, GraphPad)

Job description

Senior Scientist, Viral Upstream Process Development (Philadelphia, PA)

Reporting to the Associate Director, Upstream Process Development, the Senior Scientist will contribute to upstream viral process development to bring Client's pipeline of T cell and viral vector-based products to the clinic. Responsibilities will include, but are not limited to, performing the day-to-day activities of the viral process development lab, building Client's viral manufacturing capabilities, and executing experiments to support viral process development/characterization. This role will collaborate significantly with research and analytical development teams, as well as contract development and manufacturing organizations.

Key responsibilities

• Contribute to the setup and organization of the Client's vector process development capabilities.
• Develop bench scale suspension culture processes for viral vector generation within shake flasks and bioreactors through design and execution of experiments to support process characterization, and process transfer activities between the research team, TechOps, and external partners.
• Provide experimental execution, data review and analysis, and maintenance of accurate and detailed lab notebooks.
• Perform day-to-day activities in the vector process development lab including maintaining equipment, ordering materials and managing inventory, and preparing buffers and process aids.
• Author and review technical documents, including but not limited to batch records, SOPs, development reports and process specific sections of regulatory documents.
• Represent Client externally at meetings (professional associations, with regulatory bodies, etc.).
• Serve as a PD subject matter expert on both internal and external teams (CDMO, material & equipment suppliers, etc.).

Required experience & skills

• Bachelor’s Degree with 10 years, Master’s Degree with 8 years or Ph.D. with 5 years in chemical engineering, biochemical engineering/bioengineering, biotechnology or related discipline
• Hands‑on experience with viral vector upstream processing, including excellent small‑scale aseptic technique and expert understanding of bioreactor operation and control loops.
• Experience implementing processes in clinical and commercial manufacturing of cell and gene therapy / biopharma products
• Demonstrated ability to apply knowledge of cell biology, chemical engineering, or bioengineering toward process development, scale‑up/scale‑down and troubleshooting
• Strong scientific reasoning, problem‑solving, and applied mathematics and statistics skills, including the ability to break down complex problems into manageable hypotheses
• Proven experience collaborating with internal and external partners
• Ability to balance individual contributions while training and informally mentoring junior colleagues.
• Working knowledge of GMP guidelines for clinical and commercial manufacturing
• Proficiency in using Microsoft Word, Excel, Power Point and data analysis/presentation software such as JMP and/or GraphPad
• Excellent interpersonal, verbal and written communication skills
• Strong organizational & problem‑solving skills, with excellent attention to detail and the proven ability to collaborate in a dynamic team environment

Preferred experience & skills

• End‑to‑end experience in plasmid and Lentivirus development and manufacturing
• Experience with high‑throughput bioreactors systems, namely AMBR, but others will be considered
• Experience drafting CMC sections for INDs