Principal Scientist (Biochemistry/Enzymology)

4,000 professionals, 0 days wasted, 1 incredible purpose. Together, we are beating cancer.

Starting salary: From £50,400-£57,400 per annum depending on experience plus benefits (include up to 12% pension contribution and income protection).

Reports to: Group Leader Mechanistic Pharmacology

Department: Research and Innovation

Contract: Permanent

Hours: Full time 35 hours per week (flexible working requests considered if they meet business needs)

Location: Babraham Research Campus, Cambridge or Scotland Institute, Glasgow

Closing date: We are shortlisting as we go, therefore this vacancy may close earlier if a high volume of applications is received or once a suitable candidate is found, therefore we strongly recommend that you apply early to avoid disappointment.

Visa sponsorship: Cancer Research UK can consider visa sponsorship for this vacancy. If this applies to you, please ensure that this is clearly marked on your application.

At Cancer Research UK, we exist to beat cancer. We are professionals with purpose, beating cancer every day. But we need to go much further and much faster. That’s why we’re looking for someone talented, someone determined, someone like you.

We currently have an opportunity within our Drug Discovery team for an experienced and passionate Principal Scientist to bring scientific leadership to the design, prosecution and analysis of biochemical assays and bespoke mechanistic data, based at our Babraham Research Campus facilities in Cambridge. This is an exciting opportunity and time to join us as we further implement our 5-year plan.

About CRUK Drug Discovery: As the world’s biggest medical research charity, we’ve helped bring eleven new cancer drugs to market. However, there is still an urgent need to bring more effective treatments to patients faster. We have recently developed a new approach to driving therapeutic innovation through the creation of Cancer Research Horizons (CRH). We have brought together Cancer Research UK’s established drug discovery teams under one organisation and leadership team, combining our unique pipeline of cancer biology expertise and access to CRUK’s world-class academic network, cutting edge technology platforms and clinical expertise to 1) bring new treatments to patients faster and 2) tackle the biggest challenges in discovering cancer drugs by seeking out more radical ideas and embracing risk in our bid to achieve success.

Based at sites in Cambridge, the CRUK Scotland Institute in Glasgow, the Francis Crick Institute in London, and Newcastle University, Cancer Research Horizons employs ~200 staff from both industrial and academic backgrounds.

What will I be doing? Our strategy sets out to bring deeper mechanistic understanding at the molecular and cellular level to all stages of projects, from idea to pre-clinical candidate. This role is focussed on designing and developing physiologically relevant biochemical assays to characterise cancer targets in detail at the molecular level, enable high-throughput screening, profile the structure-activity and structure-kinetic relationships of small molecules, and characterise their mechanism of action to inform dose prediction and clinical efficacy. The successful candidate will drive innovative ways of working through keeping abreast of cutting-edge cellular pharmacology techniques and approaches. Furthermore, we actively encourage our colleagues to celebrate our science, by attending conferences, presenting posters, giving talks at events and publishing papers. You might currently be a Principal Scientist or Senior Scientific Officer looking to move into a more patient focused environment; this role will give you the opportunity to form an integral part of the Cancer Research Horizon Drug Discovery team working alongside our industry and academic partners to progress novel cancer targets towards patient benefit.

What skills will I need? We are seeking an accomplished scientific expert with the following skills and experience:

• A BSc, MSc or PhD in biochemistry or in vitro pharmacology; relevant experience may be substituted for education.
• Significant experience in a drug discovery environment of dissecting enzyme and small molecule inhibitor mechanisms.
• Detailed understanding of steady-state and pre-steady-state enzymology. Experience in Modelling and Simulation will be an advantage.
• Detailed theoretical and practical understanding of biochemical assays and detection technologies, with a particular focus on physiologically relevant systems.
• Significant experience of assay development for a range of target classes.
• Demonstrated scientific leadership skills with ability to give strategic direction.
• Credible external reputation, as evidenced through publication, presentation at key conferences, and a strong personal network.

Our organisation values are designed to guide all that we do:

• Bold: Act with ambition, courage and determination.
• Credible: Act with rigour and professionalism.
• Human: Act to have a positive impact on people.
• Together: Act inclusively and collaboratively.

We’re looking for people who can believe in and embody these organisation values and can use them to drive forward progress against our mission to beat cancer.

If you’re interested in applying and excited about working with us but are unsure if you have the right skills and experience, we’d still love to hear from you.

What will I gain? We create a working environment that supports your wellbeing and provide a generous benefits package, a wide range of career and personal development opportunities and high-quality tools. Our policies and processes enable you to improve your work-life balance, take positive steps in your career and achieve your personal wellbeing goals.

How do I apply? We operate an anonymised shortlisting process in our commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion. CVs are required for all applications; but we won’t be able to view them until we invite you for an interview. Instead, we ask you to complete the work history section of the online application form for us to be able to assess you fairly and objectively.

Our vision is to create a charity where everyone feels like they belong, benefits from and participates in, the work we do. We actively encourage applications from people of all backgrounds and cultures, in particular those from ethnic minority backgrounds who are currently under-represented. We want to see every candidate performing at their best throughout the job application process, interview process and whilst at work. We therefore ask you to inform us of any concerns you have or any adjustments you might need to enable this to happen.

Unfortunately, we are unable to recruit anyone below the age of 18, so that we can protect young people from health & safety and safeguarding risks.