Senior Scientist, Biology-Discovery Full-time

Senior Scientist

We're seeking an experienced Senior Scientist to join the Infectious Disease and Vaccines department at our research site in West Point, PA. The candidate will have a primary role in a team responsible for the discovery and development of novel antiviral treatments. The candidate will independently design and execute experiments to interrogate fundamental virus biology, virus-host interactions, and immunological responses using various biochemical and cell-based assays. The candidate should have a strong background in virology, immunoassay and genomic technologies, cell biology, animal pharmacology, and general knowledge of infectious disease drug development. We value creative thinking, teamwork, and independent analytical problem solving. If you are a highly motivated team player with a strong desire to impact basic research and translational medicine, we invite you to consider joining our team.

EDUCATION REQUIREMENT:

BS/BA degree in Biology or Biomedical Sciences with a minimum 7 years of experience in industry and/or academia, or a MS degree in Biology or Biomedical Sciences with 4 years of experience in industry and or academia, or PhD with >1 year postdoctoral experience.

REQUIRED SKILLS:

• Mammalian cell culture — maintenance and manipulation of immortalized cell lines and primary cells.
• Cell-based antiviral assays — design, execution, and analysis of infection and drug-response assays.
• RT-qPCR/qPCR and nucleic acid extraction — robust RNA/DNA isolation and quantitative PCR for viral load and gene expression.
• Protein analysis — Western blotting and basic protein quantitation.
• Virology fundamentals — safe handling, propagation, and titration of viruses (plaque/titer or focus-forming assays).
• Keen awareness of emerging biology and new technologies.
• Good laboratory practices and documentation — accurate record-keeping, adherence to biosafety procedures, and reproducible experimental workflows.

PREFERRED SKILLS

• High-content or fluorescence microscopy — image acquisition and basic image analysis for phenotypic readouts.
• Data analysis and statistics — ability to analyze dose–response, kinetics, and experimental data using tools such as R, or Python.

The salary range for this role is $117,000.00 – $184,200.00. 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.