Senior Scientist, Automated Purifications & Separations

AstraZeneca•Cambridge, MA

7d•$118,870 - $178,306•Onsite

About The Position

Join our Analytical, Structural, and Chromatography (ASC) team in Cambridge at an exciting moment — we're establishing new laboratories at Kendall Square and expanding automated purification capabilities for oncology discovery. This is a hands-on, high-throughput separations role in a collaborative team that values productivity, scientific curiosity, and genuine enjoyment of working together. This role is the engine of our library purification workflow. You'll run automated and semi-automated achiral and chiral SFC and RP-LCMS purifications at high throughput — screening available methods, passing to the custom team when method development is needed, and keeping the pipeline moving. You'll also use NMR data (crude and post-purification) to assess recovery, flag issues, and build understanding of how physical-chemical properties predict purification outcomes. You'll work on an evolving automation platform. Things won't always work perfectly — and that's part of the role. We need someone who troubleshoots collaboratively, contributes to continuous improvement, and finds satisfaction in making systems better rather than waiting for someone else to fix them.

Requirements

PhD in chemistry or related field with 0+ years of relevant separations experience -OR- Bachelor's/Master's with 5+ years relevant experience
Proven experience with SFC and/or LC-based purification, ideally in discovery R&D
Demonstrated ability to work effectively in a lab-based, team environment — collaborative, communicative, and energized by shared goals
Experience with instrument troubleshooting and hands-on system ownership
Strong organizational and communication skills
Operates with integrity, curiosity, and accountability
Comfortable working with digital tools and data systems, with willingness to learn
We value scientific curiosity, proactive communication, and a collaborative approach to problem-solving

Nice To Haves

Experience with automated purification platforms and workflow orchestration
Familiarity with chiral SFC (experience or strong interest in developing capability)
Exposure to end-to-end automated workflows, including robotics and sample handling
Experience with light programming, scripting, or workflow customization
Comfort leveraging modern tools (e.g., light scripting, LLM-assisted coding, cross-vendor software environments)
Working knowledge of NMR and/or MS as a user
Interest in advancing data-driven and AI-enabled workflows
Track record of contributing to publications or scientific communications

Responsibilities

High-throughput purification delivery: Maintain strong, shared productivity across automated achiral and chiral SFC and RP-LCMS platforms to meet program timelines for libraries, batched singletons, and singleton compounds
End-to-end workflow execution: Sample preparation through dry-down and reformatting, including robotic transfer to plates and NMR tubes, with clear traceability and smooth handoffs
Screening and triage: Screen available methods for incoming samples; escalate to the custom purification team when no hits are found, with clear communication of what was tried
NMR-informed purification science: Use crude and post-purification NMR data to understand recovery, flag science-based themes, and contribute to predictive approaches alongside physical-chemical property data
Instrument ownership and reliability: First-line troubleshooting and routine user maintenance to maximize automation uptime — working with the team, not in isolation
Continuous improvement: Identify bottlenecks, contribute solutions, and implement process improvements to increase throughput and data quality
Cross-functional collaboration: Partner with medicinal chemistry, analytical, structural, and chromatography colleagues to align priorities and deliver purified, characterized compounds
Science impact: Contribute to publications, science highlights, and postcards that tell the story of what our team delivers and discovers