Scientist - Discovery Biology, Oncology

Working with Us

Challenging. Meaningful. Life‑changing. Those aren't words that are usually associated with a job. But working at Bristol Myers Squibb is anything but usual. Here, uniquely interesting work happens every day, in every department. From optimizing a production line to the latest breakthroughs in cell therapy, this is work that transforms the lives of patients, and the careers of those who do it. You'll get the chance to grow and thrive through opportunities uncommon in scale and scope, alongside high‑achieving teams.

Take your career farther than you thought possible.

Bristol Myers Squibb recognises the importance of balance and flexibility in our work environment. We offer a wide variety of competitive benefits, services and programs that provide our employees with the resources to pursue their goals, both at work and in their personal lives.

We are seeking an experienced individual with cancer research and oncology drug discovery expertise to join the Discovery Biology team within the Oncology Thematic Research Center at Bristol‑Myers Squibb in Cambridge, MA. The qualified candidate is a highly motivated, interactive, creative scientist, with the ability to work across functions to advance small molecule programs from target discovery and validation to lead optimisation, selection of drug candidate and IND‑enabling biology related activities.

This individual will be dedicated to designing and executing experimental studies related to the decisional progress of our programmes from early stages all the way through IND filling, advancing the understanding of mechanism of action and developing cellular assays to enable compound triaging and identification of potential drug candidate. The candidate will also work closely with informatics and predictive science, lead discovery and optimisation, in‑vivo pharmacology, and translational research teams to design and execute work related to patient stratification, identification of appropriate PD markers and assay development/transfer for miniaturisation.

• Applies extensive scientific knowledge and technical skills to conduct molecular and cellular biology related studies to better understand target and disease biology.
• Uses current and new technologies for function‑based characterisation for small molecule hit validation, mechanism of action understanding, and compound triaging/ranking.
• Designs and executes molecular and cellular experiments independently, troubleshooting as needed, interpreting and discussing data, with accurate, timely and detailed record‑keeping.
• Designs, optimises and executes molecular and cellular assays for cytotoxic payload screening, characterization and mechanism of action studies.
• Applies understanding of cancer biology to hypothesise and validate novel cytotoxic payloads and combination strategies.
• Generates and characterises relevant cancer cell models, including engineering drug‑resistant lines and utilising genetic tools (CRISPR, shRNA, siRNA, lentiviral over-expression).
• Conducts studies to evaluate small molecule or payload efficacy, selectivity and synergy in 2D/3D/spheroid systems, and develops assays for cytotoxicity, proliferation, apoptosis and high‑content imaging.
• Collaborates closely with ADC biology, chemistry, pharmacology and predictive science teams to enable seamless integration of payload screening data into programme decision‑making.
• Collaborates with the rest of the biology team and other functional area leads (pharmacology, DMPK, informatics and predictive science).
• Communicates via email, meetings and reports utilizing excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• Makes presentations in small, multidisciplinary meetings, logically presenting data and interpretation to convey clear, key messages.

• Bachelor’s Degree – 5 + years of academic and/or industry experience (industry experience desired).
• Master’s Degree – 3 + years of academic and/or industry experience (industry experience desired).
• Ph.D. or equivalent advanced degree in the Life Sciences – No experience necessary.

• Extensive knowledge and track record in…