Lead Computational Chemist

Permanent Opportunity

Cambridge – UK

Boston - US

At AstraZeneca, we turn ideas into life-changing medicines. Working here means being entrepreneurial, thinking big and working together to make the impossible a reality. We’re passionate about the potential of science to address the unmet needs of patients around the world. We commit to those areas where we believe we can really change the course of medicine and bring big new ideas to life!

AstraZeneca’s vision in Oncology is to push the boundaries of science to change the practice of medicine, transform the lives of patients living with cancer and to ultimately eliminate cancer as a cause of death!

To succeed in this vision, AstraZeneca are seeking an experienced computational chemist for our Oncology medicinal chemistry department based in Cambridge, UK and Boston, US. The successful candidate will be a professional computational chemist, with a passion for drug discovery and significant experience of working in drug discovery project teams within a biotech or pharmaceutical setting.

You will join an established group of 12 computational chemists working on oncology drug discovery projects across a range of modalities and will have access to state-of-the-art computational methods, such as our FEP and AI platforms, and excellent lead generation capabilities.

Does this sound like you? if so...we are keen to speak with you.

Key responsibilities

As a leading member of the medicinal chemistry design team, you will be responsible for:

Setting and delivering on computational and medicinal chemistry strategies to impact project success at all stages from drug target identification through to clinical candidate nomination.

Working with a high degree of independence, you will carry out structure- and ligand-based design and data analysis, extracting insight from large proprietary structural biology and SAR data sets; your contributions to molecular design will be expected to result in inventorship on patent applications.

You will work closely with scientists from other disciplines including structural biology, biophysics, ADME/DMPK and safety sciences as part of the wider drug discovery project team, and will present your work regularly to peers and senior partners. Depending on experience and interest, you might also function as the lead chemist for a drug discovery project.

At AstraZeneca, we value scientific innovation. Maintaining an awareness of the current state-of-the art, you will identify promising new computational methodologies or technologies that could benefit drug discovery, and will develop and implement these through internal or external collaborations, sharing best practice across AstraZeneca. You will be expected to publish your work regularly in high quality scientific journals and at national and international conferences.

You’ll have the opportunity to supervise PhD students and postdocs through academic collaborations, as well as to mentor colleagues. The scope for personal development is vast.

Profile

• Ph.D. degree in computational chemistry, or B.Sc./M.Sc with equivalent experience
• Greater than 5 years’ experience working as a computational chemist on predominantly small molecule drug discovery projects in a Pharmaceutical or Biotech setting
• Broad experience in structure and ligand-based design, data analysis and property prediction
• A passion for drug discovery and an excellent understanding of medicinal chemistry concepts
• Innovative problem-solver, with a track record of impacting drug project delivery
• Strong oral and written communication skills, team-working and time-management skills

You will receive a generous remuneration and be eligible for highly competitive flexible benefits.

If you are passionate about the possibilities of science to make a difference and are ready to discover what you can do, then apply today!

AstraZeneca is a global, innovation-driven biopharmaceutical business that focuses on the discovery, development and commercialization of prescription medicines for some of the world’s most serious diseases. But we're more than one of the world's leading pharmaceutical companies. At AstraZeneca, we're proud to have a unique workplace culture that inspires innovation and collaboration. Here, employees are empowered to express diverse perspectives - and are made to feel valued, energized and rewarded for their ideas and creativity.

To be considered for this exciting opportunity, please complete the full application on our website at your earliest convenience – it is the only way that our Recruiter and Hiring Manager can know that you feel well qualified for this opportunity.  If you know someone who would be a great fit, please share this posting with them.

Date Posted

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AstraZeneca embraces diversity and equality of opportunity.  We are committed to building an inclusive and diverse team representing all backgrounds, with as wide a range of perspectives as possible, and harnessing industry-leading skills.  We believe that the more inclusive we are, the better our work will be.  We welcome and consider applications to join our team from all qualified candidates, regardless of their characteristics.  We comply with all applicable laws and regulations on non-discrimination in employment (and recruitment), as well as work authorization and employment eligibility verification requirements.