Molecular Characterisation Scientist, Biologics

Job Summary

Required Qualifications

• •Hands-on experience with biophysical and/or analytical instrumentation for protein characterisation
• •Comfortable executing assays in a high-throughput format through manual, semi-automated, and instrumented phases
• •A track record of working alongside non-scientist colleagues (automation, software, computational) on a shared workflow
• •Relevant hands-on lab experience, including apprenticeships or technician roles
• •Comfortable following written SOPs precisely and flagging deviations
• •Hands-on familiarity with basic wet-lab technique: accurate pipetting, buffer and reagent preparation, sample handling, plate setup, and instrument use
• •Comfortable in a fast-paced, early-stage environment where protocols are still being written
• •Aware of structured experimental data capture, and able to use a LIMS, ELN, or analogous infrastructure
• •A PhD in protein biophysics, analytical characterisation, or biologics developability, with two or more years of relevant hands-on experience
• •An MSc with five years of experience in the same area (protein biophysics, analytical characterisation, or biologics developability)
• •Independent, hands-on competence on at least one biophysical binding platform (SPR or BLI)
• •Competence on one or more orthogonal characterisation or developability assays (for example nanoDSF/DSF, DLS, analytical SEC, HIC, AC-SINS, cIEF, or PAIA)
• •Some exposure to one or more of these areas at high throughput (96 and 384-well plate formats)
• •Confident data analysis: kinetics fitting and interpretation, and telling instrument artefacts apart from genuine molecule behaviour
• •Fluency with structured experimental data capture, and proficiency with a LIMS, ELN, or analogous infrastructure
• •Ready to grow into protocol authorship and SOP ownership over the first twelve months
• •A PhD in protein biochemistry, biophysics, analytical characterisation, or biologics developability, with five or more years of relevant hands-on experience (at least two in industry)
• •A relevant science MSc with eight years of equivalent bench experience in protein science (at least two in industry)
• •Independent, extensive experience with biologics characterisation workflows across at least three core areas, such as full SPR/BLI kinetics, epitope binning, immunoassay (ELISA)-based assays, thermal and colloidal stability characterisation (nanoDSF, DLS, SLS, analytical SEC), and developability assessment (HIC, heparin LC, AC-SINS, forced degradation)
• •Experience in two or more of these areas at high throughput (96 and 384-well plate formats), establishing and optimising workflows, SOPs, and validation
• •Proficiency with structured experimental data capture using a LIMS, ELN, or analogous infrastructure
• •Method development and validation experience: defining acceptance criteria, references, and controls that other scientists have run successfully
• •SOP and protocol authorship that others have executed, and experience supervising at least one junior scientist or technician
• •Hands-on experience collecting and analysing binding kinetics and affinity data
• •Assessing the developability of biologics
• •Writing good SOPs
• •Holding yourself and your colleagues to clear reproducibility thresholds
• •Being pragmatic about being hands-on in the early phase, when the cadence is heaviest
• •Understanding that hands-on cadence eases as protocols move onto instrumentation
• •Enjoying working at the boundary with non-biologist colleagues (automation engineers, software engineers, AI researchers)
• •Not requiring non-biologist colleagues to be scientifically fluent before collaborating
• •In-person, lab-based role at 20 Triton Street in London
• •Manual development phase is hands-on
• •Understanding that manual development cadence is heaviest early

Desired Qualifications

• •Direct experience moving biophysical or analytical assays from manual workflows onto automation platforms (at least a handoff into an automated platform)
• •Experience developing a tiered developability or characterisation cascade, mapping properties (binding, stability, aggregation, hydrophobicity, charge, polyreactivity) onto an assay funnel calibrated to throughput and material availability
• •Experience working with computational or AI/ML colleagues on closed-loop assay programmes
• •Background at an AI-native biotech or foundation-model company