Synthetic Organic Chemist

Contribute to the Discovery of Next-Generation Medicines

Join an innovative pharmaceutical organisation in Cambridge to become a vital part of a growing discovery chemistry team. You will play a key role in designing, synthesising, and optimising novel molecules that support cutting-edge drug discovery programmes. Working within state-of-the-art laboratories, you will contribute to medicinal chemistry projects from route design through to compound delivery, collaborating closely with multidisciplinary research teams.

Key Responsibilities

• Design and optimise synthetic routes to novel target molecules.
• Execute organic synthesis, purification, and characterisation activities.
• Troubleshoot synthetic and analytical challenges.
• Interpret analytical data, including NMR and LC-MS.
• Contribute to Design-Make-Test-Analyse cycles across drug discovery projects.
• Maintain accurate experimental records and communicate results effectively.
• Present scientific findings to project teams.
• Support laboratory equipment, safety initiatives, and continuous improvement.
• Contribute to publications, patents, and scientific presentations where appropriate.

Requirements

• PhD in Synthetic Organic Chemistry, Medicinal Chemistry, or a related discipline, plus industry experience, or MSc with significant pharmaceutical or biotech experience.
• Strong practical and theoretical knowledge of modern organic synthesis.
• Experience designing and optimising synthetic routes.
• Broad hands-on experience across organic synthesis, purification, and analytical techniques.
• Ability to interpret compound characterisation data.
• Strong problem-solving skills and a results-focused approach.
• Excellent communication skills and ability to work within multidisciplinary teams.

Desirable Experience

• Photochemistry or high-throughput experimentation.
• Oligonucleotide chemistry.
• HPLC, LC-MS, or NMR.
• Electronic laboratory notebooks and scientific data management.
• KNIME, Dotmatics, Spotfire, or related software.
• Computational chemistry tools such as Schrödinger, MOE, or PyMOL.
• Publications, patents, or intellectual property support.

The Opportunity

This is an excellent opportunity to join a growing research organisation developing innovative small-molecule therapeutics. You will work alongside experienced scientists in a collaborative environment that encourages scientific creativity, innovation, and professional development.