Medicinal Chemist – Small Molecule Drug Discovery

We are partnering with an innovative biotech company to recruit a talented Medicinal Chemist for their discovery team. This is a unique opportunity to contribute to cutting-edge small molecule drug discovery programs in a highly collaborative and science-driven environment.

The successful candidate will play a pivotal role in designing, evaluating, and optimizing novel compounds, integrating medicinal chemistry expertise with structure-based drug design to advance projects from hit identification through lead optimization.

Key Responsibilities

• Design and optimize small molecules using structure-based drug design (SBDD), docking, FEP, and related computational approaches.

• Apply medicinal chemistry principles to enhance potency, selectivity, ADME, and physicochemical properties.

• Interpret and leverage SAR (structure–activity relationship) data to propose next-generation analogs.

• Collaborate closely with computational chemists, biologists, and DMPK scientists to drive projects forward.

• Contribute to project strategy, compound design cycles, and hit-to-lead/lead optimization campaigns.

Qualifications

• Strong track record in small-molecule drug discovery and medicinal chemistry.

• Experience working within a biotech or pharmaceutical R&D setting.

• Proven contributions to hit-to-lead and lead optimization campaigns.

• Demonstrated creativity in designing next-generation analogs and solving challenging optimization problems.

• Ability to thrive in cross-functional teams, collaborating across computational chemistry, biology, and DMPK.

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with experience presenting research findings and strategic insights.

• Experience influencing project strategy and contributing to compound design cycles in multidisciplinary environments.