UCB Posted August 15, 2026

Associate Scientist

Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States OTHER
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UCB 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

Make your mark for patients

We are seeking to hire a lab-based (non-hybrid) scientist to support early research at our Boston R&D Hub located in Cambridge MA.  This scientist will have responsibility for executing assays for identification of small molecules therapeutics across UCB’s therapeutic areas of interest.  They will also help to validate novel biological targets.    Please note:  For this particular role, we will not be able to sponsor the successful candidate for work authorization in the United States now or in the future, including taking over an existing work Visa.

Major Accountabilities/Responsibilities:

Work with team to develop, troubleshoot, and validate new assays

Generate cell models for screening and to mimic disease biology

Have accountability for achieving drug project milestones and delivering on objectives

Be involved in planning, optimizing, and executing on projects

Interested? For this position you’ll need the following education, experience and skills:

Minimum Required Qualifications:

BS degree with 4-6 years or MS degree with 2-4 years of applicable research experience with scientific track record

2+ years of experience with the design, development, optimization, and prosecution of cellular and biochemical assays for identification and evaluation of novel molecular entities

Direct hands-on experience with cell and molecular biology techniques and culturing human cell lines

Good communicator, with good presentation and organizational skills

Scientist who can work with some supervision but also to thrive in a multidisciplinary team environment

Preferred Experience & Skills:

Experience with small molecules/ligands/therapeutics is preferred

Working knowledge or experience with CRISPR screening approaches is a plus

Knowledge of targeted protein degradation is a plus

Neuroscience and/or immunology background is a plus

Salary:

This position’s reasonably anticipated base salary range is $86,400 to $113,400 per year. The actual salary offered will consider internal equity and may also vary depending on the candidate’s region, job-related knowledge, skills and experience, among other factors.

Are you ready to ‘go beyond’ to create value and make your mark for patients? If this sounds like you, then we would love to hear from you!

About us 

UCB is a global biopharmaceutical company, focusing on neurology and immunology. We are over 9.000 people in all four corners of the globe, inspired by patients and driven by science.

Why work with us? 

At UCB, we don’t just complete tasks, we create value. We aren’t afraid to push forward, collaborate, and innovate to make our mark for patients. We have a caring, supportive culture where everyone feels included, respected, and has equal opportunities to do their best work. We ‘go beyond’ to create value for our patients, and always with a human focus, whether that’s on our patients, our employees, or our planet. Working for us, you will discover a place where you can grow, and have the freedom to carve your own career path to achieve your full potential.

At UCB, we’ve embraced a hybrid-first approach to work, bringing teams together in local hubs to foster collaborative curiosity. Unless explicitly stated in the description or precluded by the nature of the position, roles are hybrid with 40% of your time spent in the office.

UCB is an equal opportunity employer. All employment decisions will be made without regard to any characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law. UCB invites you to voluntarily self-identify during the application process. Provision of self-identification information is entirely voluntary and a decision to provide or not provide such information will not have any effect on your application for employment, your employment with UCB, or otherwise subject you to any adverse treatment. Any information you provide will be considered confidential and will be kept separate from your application and/or personnel file and will only be used in accordance with applicable laws, orders, and regulations.

Should you require any adjustments to our process to assist you in demonstrating your strengths and capabilities contact us on US-Reasonable_Accommodation@ucb.com for application to US based roles. Please note should your enquiry not relate to adjustments; we will not be able to support you through this channel.

Job details

Seniority
Associate
Function
Drug Discovery & Preclinical Research
Therapeutic area
Not listed
Location
Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States
Employment type
OTHER

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 174 comparable Associate Drug Discovery & Preclinical Research roles across 39 biopharma companies.

174Comparable roles tracked
159Currently active
39Companies hiring similar roles
17Countries represented

Salary context

59 of 174 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 $86,400/yr – $113,400/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 174 comparable roles

United States114
France13
Germany9
Belgium7
United Kingdom6
Switzerland5

+ 11 more countries

Seniority mix

174 of 174 peers have a known seniority level

Intern/Fellow/Postdoc83
Associate70
Manager21

Therapeutic area mix

17 of 174 peers have a known therapeutic area; the rest are genuinely unlabeled, not hidden

Oncology8
Neuroscience4
Immunology3
Cardiovascular / CVRM2

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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.

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AbbVie North Chicago, IL Associate
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AbbVie Worcester, MA Associate
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60%similar
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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
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.