Senior Scientist in London

About the role

We are looking for a Senior Scientist to support CEPI laboratory partnerships by providing expert advice and guidance during the development and validation of immunoassays and/or diagnostic assays for testing vaccine candidates during pre-clinical and clinical trials, and for vaccine deployment. This is a one year fixed-term contract.

Responsibilities

• Assist the development and implementation of immunological assays, such as ELISA, virus neutralization assays, ELISPOT, flow cytometry, etc., within the CEPI laboratory networks
• Serve as assay and technology transfer expert to support the CEPI laboratory networks
• Support CEPI’s ongoing vaccine development projects through offering preclinical expertise in vaccine discovery and development
• Take part in application reviews, due diligence, and project teams related to new analytical technologies.
• Provide technical support for diagnostic evaluation and development projects
• As part of a matrixed team, assist other groups in the Diagnostics, Animal Model and Pre-Clinical space within the Department of Laboratory Research and Innovations with enabling sciences projects for CEPI priority pathogens or Disease X
• Serve as expert and advisor for review of applications for CEPI funding through calls for proposals for laboratory partners and contribute to the due diligence process.

Education, Experience and Competence

• Essential: Advanced degree (PhD level) in Immunology or related disciplines (life science), with a minimum of 10 years post-graduate experience.
• Desirable: Experience coordinating and developing laboratory networks or partnerships in vaccine development, diagnostics, biotechnology, public health, or global health, including governance, stakeholder engagement, and delivery of shared priorities.
• Required: experienced in development and validation of immunoassays for testing vaccine/therapeutic candidates during clinical trials (GLP/GMP and GCLP compliance) and pre-clinical phase and in development and validation of diagnostic assays for case confirmation and RDTs
• Required: Knowledge of regulatory compliance and technology transfer is required
• Required Experience in QC/QA data management and reporting and management of analytical testing is required
• Required Experience with key reagents procurement for pre-clinical & clinical trial assays is required
• Required Knowledge in high throughput multiplex assays platforms is desirable
• Required: experience with BSL3/4 laboratory containment environment and/or toxicology testing is desirable
• Required: Experience in diagnostics and/or immunoassay development, validation, and implementation, as well as familiarity with applying data science or AI methods to assay or diagnostic data. This includes understanding validation, reproducibility, and governance expectations.
• Required: Experience working in collaborative research and development projects, ideally across sectors such as academia, industry, public organisations, and philanthropic funders.
• Required: Strong problem-solving skills and careful attention to detail and accuracy.
• Required: Strong communication and interpersonal skills.
• Required: Strong computer and digital skills.

Travel and Location Requirements

• This role is based in the UK or Norway.
• Willingness and ability to travel internationally as required.

What we can offer you

• The opportunity to work together with leading experts on solutions for global challenges
• Experience from the international effort on developing vaccines against emerging infectious diseases and accelerating vaccine development response to outbreaks
• A diverse and inclusive working environment