Associate Principal Scientist, Pharmacokinetics Full-time

Associate Principal Scientist

The SSF Pharmacokinetics, Dynamics, Metabolism and Bioanalytics (PDMB) group is seeking an Associate Principal Scientist to contribute to our Company's biologics, drug conjugates, and novel modality discovery and development pipeline. The Associate Principal Scientist will be primarily discovery team-facing and is expected to be a key contributor to the multi-disciplinary drug discovery effort for various therapeutics (biologic therapeutics, antibody-drug conjugate, peptide, small molecule). Therapeutic areas will include immunology, oncology, cardiovascular and metabolic disease, and ophthalmology.

Key Responsibilities:

• Project-team representative for biologics or other modality drug discovery and development. Contribute to overall team strategy and lead the formation and execution of team-specific PDMB workflow.
• Design and execute in vitro and in vivo mechanistic and translational studies to evaluate the pharmacokinetic and metabolic properties of therapeutic proteins, such as drug conjugates and other modalities, to influence drug design, lead selection, and drive PK/PD translations. Be accountable for providing timely and high-quality PDMB data deliverables to teams.
• Author regulatory documents from FIH through registrational filing.
• Contribute to departmental scientific initiatives and strategies.
• Foster a high-performance culture of innovation, collaboration, engagement, self-accountability, and inclusion.
• Stay abreast of external scientific advancements and contribute to the evaluation and implementation of new technologies and methodologies in DMPK for drug discovery.

Position qualifications:

Education:

• Master's (with 8+ years) or Ph.D. (with 3+ years ) in Pharmacokinetics, Pharmaceutical Sciences, Chemistry, Biochemistry, Biophysics, Biology or related field and relevant experience.

Required Experience and Skills:

• Broad knowledge of ADME science and in depth-knowledge in at least one area (e.g. pharmacokinetics, human dose predictions, TPK/PD, etc.).
• Has fundamental understanding of drug discovery and/or development of biologic drug candidates.
• Has basic experience with Certara Phoenix Software.
• Works independently with some technical & strategic guidance from scientific supervisor.
• Capable of solving complex problems outside of own area of expertise.
• Strong leadership, interpersonal, communication, problem solving, and collaboration skills along with strengths in delivering results in fast-paced environment.
• Demonstrated inclination towards recognition in the field, creativity, and innovation via a strong publication/presentation record.

Preferred Experience and Skills:

• Prior experience with multiple therapeutic modalities (e.g. small molecules, peptides, etc.) and/or novel modalities.
• Prior experience evaluating the biodistribution of biologics in preclinical species.
• Knowledge in novel and translatable in vitro cellular models and/or in vivo models.
• Hands-on experience with compartmental PKPD modeling.

Required Skills: ADME, Biochemistry, Biologics, Biophysics, Chemistry, Pharmaceutical Sciences, Pharmacokinetics, Strategy Development, Translational Pharmacokinetics and Pharmacodynamics (PKPD)

Preferred Skills:

The salary range for this role is $159,600.00 – $251,200.00

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 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.

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

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: Hybrid

Shift: 1st – Day

Valid Driving License: No

Hazardous Material(s): N/A

Job Posting End Date: 03/31/2026

*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.