Senior Cheminformatics Scientist Lead Drug Discovery Remote

Placements24; Gauteng; Hybrid; ZAR 1,500,000 - 2,400,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Remote work flexibility

Competitive salary and bonus

Health, retirement, and life insurance

World-class computational resources

Job summary

Placements24 is seeking an experienced Principal Scientist in Cheminformatics to lead data analysis and modeling for Centurion research programs. You will develop computational strategies to guide drug discovery, build predictive models, and design virtual screening campaigns.

The role demands a PhD and 7+ years in pharma/biotech, with Python (RDKit, Pandas) and SQL expertise, plus ML experience. Remote work flexibility offered for the right candidate.

Qualifications

• PhD in Cheminformatics, Computational Chemistry, Computer Science, or related quantitative field.
• 7+ years applying cheminformatics in pharma/biotech.
• Expertise in descriptors, similarity searching, clustering, and machine learning.
• Proficiency in Python (RDKit, Pandas) and SQL.
• Experience with Schrödinger Suite, MOE, KNIME.
• Strong understanding of organic chemistry and drug discovery.

Responsibilities

• Develop and deploy advanced cheminformatics tools for molecular modeling, virtual screening, and data mining.
• Design SAR and QSAR studies.
• Manage and curate large chemical/biological datasets with quality control.
• Collaborate with medicinal chemists, biologists, and data scientists on objectives and strategies.
• Provide expert consultation on computational approaches to library design and lead optimization.
• Mentor junior cheminformaticians and contribute to strategic direction of the computational sciences group.

Skills

Machine learning

Python

SQL

Data analysis

Education

PhD in Cheminformatics / related field

Tools

RDKit

Pandas

Schrödinger Suite

MOE

KNIME

Job description

Placements24 is seeking an experienced Principal Scientist in Cheminformatics to lead data analysis and modeling for Centurion research programs. You will develop computational strategies to guide drug discovery, build predictive models, and design virtual screening campaigns.

The role demands a PhD and 7+ years in pharma/biotech, with Python (RDKit, Pandas) and SQL expertise, plus ML experience. Remote work flexibility offered for the right candidate.