A Research Associate typically has more experience than a Research Assistant. Responsibilities can include the planning and design of research projects, conducting experiments, analyzing data, contributing to research publications or grant proposals, and collaborating with other researchers. Works in a variety of fields within science or the social sciences, in programs based at a university or research institution, or works on government or industry sponsored research projects. Conducts field or library research or recruits participants for a study; may also assist with legal research. These roles are often held by people with advanced degrees in their field of study with several years of experience in research or academia.
He/she will work closely with internal research groups as well as external collaborators to identify and validate novel drug targets in the areas of oncology, fibrosis, virology, and inflammation. Tissue-based endpoints will be used to investigate the efficacy and method of action and potential therapeutic targets. Specific duties will include optimization and/or validation of antibody reagents for IHC and CISH. He/she will have extensive experience in IHC, including method development, and will help with identification and implementation of process improvements in IHC and other histological techniques. He/she will work closely with internal Gilead research groups as well as external collaborators to identify and validate novel drug targets in the areas of oncology, fibrosis, virology, and inflammation. He/she will be responsible for development of tissue-based assays and will have a background in biology or a related discipline and laboratory experience in human and animal tissue preparation and image scanning. Development of infrastructure, tissue collections, technology and novel methodology will be implemented as needed through a combination of in-house efforts and the use of relevant CROs or other external expertise. The successful candidate must be able to independently plan, execute, and troubleshoot decisional experiments that support the initiation and/or advancement of drug candidate projects. The candidate will work cross-functionally within the organization to achieve goals, present research findings and recommendations to senior staff, and identify new technologies that may increase throughput or enhance our understanding of disease mechanisms.
Qualifications:
Applicants should have a BS degree and 8+ years of relevant experience or an MS degree with 6+ years of experience. The candidate's work history should demonstrate the direct participation in drug discovery and target identification/validation in oncology, fibrosis, inflammation, and virology research by IHC and other histological techniques. Necessary technical skills include IHC method-development protocols, tissue handling, and organized data entry. Proficiency with Microsoft Office is required. Applicants should be able to troubleshoot independently, use both strategic and tactical thinking effectively, and show curiosity-driven engagement in scientific problems. The successful candidate needs to be able to manage more than one project at any given time, to work successfully in a cross-functional and highly collaborative team environment, and to communicate clearly to a variety of audiences in both speech and writing.
