Pfizer Posted October 21, 2026

Associate Scientist (Innovation)

Pearl River, United States Full time
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Pfizer is the source of truth for this posting and owns the application process. We surface normalized context and market comparison you won't find on the original listing.

About this opportunity

Use Your Power for Purpose

At Pfizer, our purpose is to deliver breakthroughs that transform patients' lives. Central to this mission is our Research and Development team, which strives to convert advanced science and cutting-edge technologies into impactful therapies and vaccines. Whether you are engaged in discovery sciences, ensuring drug safety and efficacy, or supporting clinical trials, your role is crucial. You will leverage innovative design and process development capabilities to expedite the delivery of top tier medicines to patients globally. By integrating advanced scientific knowledge with practical applications, we aim to bring the most effective treatments to those in need, fulfilling our commitment to improving health outcomes worldwide.

What You Will Achieve

Join a highly collaborative team, where you will contribute to the development, evaluation, and implementation of scientific and automation-driven solutions that enhance laboratory efficiency, data quality, and scalability. In this role, you will work at the intersection of bench science, process optimization, and emerging technologies, supporting modernization of assay workflows and continuous improvement initiatives. Through collaboration with scientists, automation experts, and data teams, you'll help turn creative concepts into effective, lasting improvements that enhance lab workflows.

How You Will Achieve It

Contribute to the evaluation and implementation of new laboratory technologies, including automation, digital tools, and AI‑enabled solutions for data analysis or workflow improvement.

Support assay development, optimization, and troubleshooting activities, including experimental execution, data collection, and interpretation.

Perform laboratory activities according to Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and established best practices, while supporting innovation focused projects.

Support documentation practices, including review of protocols, SOPs, and data archiving. Collaborate cross-functionally with scientists, automation specialists, and quality partners to ensure improvements are scientifically sound and compliant.

Present results, experimental findings, or technology evaluations at group and project meetings; contribute to written summaries or progress updates as applicable.

Qualifications

Must-Have 

BA/BS in a life science or related field with 0-2 years of laboratory experience.

Hands-on laboratory experience including basic assay execution, pipetting, data collection, and experimental documentation.

Demonstrated interest in innovation, automation, or process improvement.

Early adopter mindset to pilot and champion emerging tools.

Experience with laboratory robotics or automation for assay and workflow efficiency.

Strong attention to detail and commitment to data quality.

Ability to work effectively in a collaborative team environment.

Strong written and verbal communication skills.

Proficiency with Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.

Experience using common AI tools, including generative technologies such as ChatGPT or Microsoft Copilot, to support problem solving and enhance productivity.

Demonstrated curiosity for exploring how these tools can improve outcomes and understanding of responsible AI practices, including risk management and ethical use.

Nice-to-Have 

Experience with assay development or optimization.

Familiarity with LIMS, ELN, or data management systems.

Experience with SOP development, method optimization, or assay transfers.

Pharmaceutical or biotech industry experience.

Work Location Assignment: On Premise

The annual base salary for this position ranges from $60,200.00 to $100,400.00. In addition, this position is eligible for participation in Pfizer’s Global Performance Plan with a bonus target of 7.5% of the base salary. We offer comprehensive and generous benefits and programs to help our colleagues lead healthy lives and to support each of life’s moments. Benefits offered include a 401(k) plan with Pfizer Matching Contributions and an additional Pfizer Retirement Savings Contribution, paid vacation, holiday and personal days, paid caregiver/parental and medical leave, and health benefits to include medical, prescription drug, dental and vision coverage. Learn more at Pfizer Candidate Site – U.S. Benefits | (uscandidates.mypfizerbenefits.com). Pfizer compensation structures and benefit packages are aligned based on the location of hire. The United States salary range provided does not apply to Tampa, FL or any location outside of the United States.

Relocation assistance may be available based on business needs and/or eligibility.

Candidates must be authorized to be employed in the U.S. by any employer.

U.S. work visa sponsorship (such as TN, O-1, H-1B, etc.) is not available for this role now or in the future.

Sunshine Act

Pfizer reports payments and other transfers of value to health care providers as required by federal and state transparency laws and implementing regulations.  These laws and regulations require Pfizer to provide government agencies with information such as a health care provider’s name, address and the type of payments or other value received, generally for public disclosure.  Subject to further legal review and statutory or regulatory clarification, which Pfizer intends to pursue, reimbursement of recruiting expenses for licensed physicians may constitute a reportable transfer of value under the federal transparency law commonly known as the Sunshine Act.  Therefore, if you are a licensed physician who incurs recruiting expenses as a result of interviewing with Pfizer that we pay or reimburse, your name, address and the amount of payments made currently will be reported to the government.  If you have questions regarding this matter, please do not hesitate to contact your Talent Acquisition representative.

EEO & Employment Eligibility

Pfizer is committed to equal opportunity in the terms and conditions of employment for all employees and job applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, age, gender identity or gender expression, national origin, disability or veteran status.  Pfizer also complies with all applicable national, state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment as well as work authorization and employment eligibility verification requirements of the Immigration and Nationality Act and IRCA.  Pfizer is an E-Verify employer.  This position requires permanent work authorization in the United States.

Pfizer endeavors to make   www.pfizer.com/careers   accessible to all users. If you would like to contact us regarding the accessibility of our website or need assistance completing the application process and/or interviewing, please email   disabilityrecruitment@pfizer.com . This is to be used solely for accommodation requests with respect to the accessibility of our website, online application process and/or interviewing. Requests for any other reason will not be returned.

To learn more about acceptable and prohibited uses of AI during the recruitment process, please review our candidate AI-use guidelines available on  Pfizer Careers .

Research and Development

Job details

Seniority
Associate
Function
Drug Discovery & Preclinical Research
Therapeutic area
Not listed
Location
Pearl River, United States
Employment type
Full time

How this role compares

Computed from every other active Drug Discovery & Preclinical Research role in our database, not just this employer's listings.

We currently track 180 comparable Associate Drug Discovery & Preclinical Research roles across 39 biopharma companies.

180Comparable roles tracked
161Currently active
39Companies hiring similar roles
18Countries represented

Salary context

63 of 180 peers report a salary range (USD, annualized)

Peers share this role's job function and a matching or adjacent seniority level -- not necessarily the same therapeutic area or country.

This roleSubject $60,200/yr – $100,400/yr
Lowest disclosed · Lab Associate Flow Cytometry · IQVIA $34,700/yr – $72,300/yr
Highest disclosed · Advisor - Isotopic Chemistry · Lilly $153,000/yr – $246,400/yr
Peer group range $53,500 – $199,700 (median $90,200)

Where these roles are based

Top locations among the 180 comparable roles

United States118
France13
Germany11
Belgium7
United Kingdom6
Switzerland4

+ 12 more countries

Seniority mix

180 of 180 peers have a known seniority level

Intern/Fellow/Postdoc83
Associate73
Manager24

Therapeutic area mix

16 of 180 peers have a known therapeutic area; the rest are genuinely unlabeled, not hidden

Oncology8
Neuroscience4
Immunology2
Vaccines & Infectious Disease1
Cardiovascular / CVRM1

Similar opportunities

The closest matches from our peer group, ranked by how similar they are, not how well you'd qualify for them -- treat this as market context, not a guaranteed shortlist; a weak match is labeled as one below.

60%similar
Amgen Inc. South San Francisco, United States Associate
Same function Same seniority Same country
60%similar
Servier Boston, United States Associate
Same function Same seniority Same country
60%similar
Amgen Inc. Thousand Oaks, United States Associate
Same function Same seniority Same country
60%similar
AbbVie North Chicago, IL Associate
Same function Same seniority Same country
60%similar
AbbVie Worcester, MA Associate
Same function Same seniority Same country
60%similar
JuN - Seattle Dexter Seattle 400 Dexter, United States Associate
Same function Same seniority Same country

Notify me about similar jobs

Get an email when we spot other openings like this one – same job function, comparable seniority, roles you'd actually want to see.

Or follow a whole field: get every new Drug Discovery & Preclinical Research job in the United States, and choose locations and companies.

How we calculate "similar"

No black box, no LLM guesswork: a deterministic score built from four normalized attributes. Here's this role's own peer group at different match levels, so you can see the mechanism, not just the result.

Every comparison starts from the same 100-point budget: 25 for working in the same function, 40 for the same therapeutic area, 20 for the same or adjacent seniority, 15 for the same country. A dimension we can't confirm on both sides contributes nothing, never a guess, never a free pass.

60%
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Function Therapeutic area Seniority Country
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Function Therapeutic area Seniority Country
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JuN - Seattle Dexter · Seattle 400 Dexter, United States · Associate
Function Therapeutic area Seniority Country
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Advisor - Mixed Modality (Oligonucleotide) Scientist - Process Translation and Execution
Lilly · Lebanon, Indiana, United States of America · Associate
Function Therapeutic area Seniority Country
Unmatched or unknown dimensions score exactly the same: 0 points, never a partial guess. A role we know almost nothing about beyond its function bottoms out at 25%; it never inflates to 100% just because there's little to compare against. Seniority uses a defined ladder (Associate → Manager → Associate Director → Senior → Principal → Director → Senior Director → Executive/VP) so "Director" and "Senior Director" count as adjacent, but "Director" and "Executive/VP" do not.