Computational Medicinal Chemist (Data Science)

About the role

Novartis is looking for a Computational Medicinal Chemist to join its Computer-Aided Drug Discovery (CADD) team in San Diego, California, working in a hybrid setting. The role sits within the Senior Expert I, Data Science position and focuses on extracting insights from large datasets to help drug discovery teams validate and develop new targets.

Key responsibilities

• Design medicinal chemistry efforts using structure-activity relationships, structure-based and ligand-based drug design, target biology, and predictive methods for on- and off-target activity, PK/PD and synthetic feasibility.
• Apply machine learning, active learning and physics-based CADD to small molecule drug discovery and the induced proximity space.
• Keep up with scientific literature and work with internal and external scientists to bring biological insights into lead characterization and screening.
• Collaborate with project teams across target identification, lead optimization and drug candidate nomination, building predictive models from high-content and time-resolved screening data, including imaging.
• Generate hypotheses to improve clinical success for programs involving small molecules, peptides, RNAs, protein degradation, molecular glues, transient covalent inhibitors and kinetic stabilization.
• Lead cross-disciplinary mechanistic studies using physics-based modeling, biophysical characterization and cellular validation to define optimal mechanisms of action.

Required profile

• PhD in medicinal chemistry, computational chemistry, cheminformatics, computational biology, computational chemical biology or a related field; lab-based candidates with strong computational experience are encouraged to apply.
• 2+ years of post-graduate experience, preferably in a drug discovery project team.
• Proven track record of innovation through analogue design is a plus.
• Rigor in idea substantiation, analogue design and experimentation, strong team orientation and good written and oral communication.

Required skills

• Familiarity with computational drug design tools such as Schrödinger, CCG and OpenEye.
• High-performance computing environments and a strong publication history in peer-reviewed journals.
• Data visualization and proficiency in Python.

What we offer

• Expected salary of $126,000 to $234,000 USD annually, with a performance-based cash incentive and possible annual equity awards.
• Health, life and disability benefits, a 401(k) with company contribution and match, and a time-off package including vacation, personal days and holidays.