Merck KGaA Posted November 7, 2026

Scientist Functional Genomics

Billerica, Massachusetts, United States Full time
Notify me about similar jobs

Merck KGaA 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

Work Your Magic with us!  Start your next chapter and join EMD Serono.

Ready to explore, break barriers, and discover more? We know you’ve got big plans – so do we! Our colleagues across the globe love innovating with science and technology to enrich people’s lives with our solutions in Healthcare, Life Science, and Electronics. Together, we dream big and are passionate about caring for our rich mix of people, customers, patients, and planet. That's why we are always looking for curious minds that see themselves imagining the unimaginable with us.

United As One for Patients, our purpose in Healthcare is to help create, improve and prolong lives. We develop medicines, intelligent devices and innovative technologies in therapeutic areas such as Oncology, Neurology and Fertility. Our teams work together across 6 continents with passion and relentless curiosity in order to help patients at every stage of life. Joining our Healthcare team is becoming part of a diverse, inclusive and flexible working culture, presenting great opportunities for personal development and career advancement across the globe.

This role does not offer sponsorship for work authorization. External applicants must be eligible to work in the US.

Your Role:

EMD Serono is hiring a Scientist of functional genomics to join the Discovery Biology group within Research Unit Neuroscience & Immunology (RU-N&I) at our state-of-the-art research facility in Billerica, MA. We are building a functional genomics group to collaborate with an international team of scientists, contributing to the discovery of drugs for neurodegenerative/neuroinflammatory and autoimmune diseases. Working with disease biology experts, the functional genomics team will use gene editing methods to identify and validate new targets as well as to generate cell models. Our cross-functional group will explore novel biology and deliver genetic evidence to advance the Neuroscience & Immunology pipeline.

What you’ll do

Plan and execute in vitro studies using complex cell systems

Use pooled, arrayed, and single cell functional genomics methods to interrogate disease biology at scale

Work with a range of NGS, imaging, and FACS-based readouts to explore the roles of candidate genes in neurologic and immunologic disease

Work with disease biology experts to develop cellular models and assays

Record data accurately in an Electronic Laboratory Notebook and maintain records per company policy and legal requirements

Prepare data reports and present to lab heads, project teams, and at external meetings

Provide technical support to colleagues in own area of expertise when necessary

Work closely with members in RU-N&I to support departmental goals

Who You Are

Minimum Qualifications:

Master’s Degree in a life science field (e.g., Biology, Biotechnology, Genetics, etc.) with 2+ years of academic or industry lab experience

OR

Bachelor’s Degree in a life science field (e.g., Biology, Biotechnology, Genetics, etc.) with 3+ years of academic or industry lab experience

AND

2+ years’ experience with complex cell culture systems and primary cells or iPSCs

2+ years using and designing gene editing tools

4+ years  in neuroscience with experience working with in vitro cell systems e.g. iPSC differentiation

Preferred Qualifications:

Background in immunology or neuroscience, with experience working with in vitro cell systems e.g. iPSC differentiation or immune cell isolation

Experience analyzing and disseminating data to support key decision making

Broad experience in molecular and cellular biology, including

Multicolored flow cytometry

High-content imaging

NGS library preparation

Single cell omics data generation

Packaging and using lentivirus for gene expression

Familiarity with documentation practices in a pharmaceutical or biotechnology discovery setting

Strong verbal and written communication skills and practiced at communicating research findings to cross-disciplinary teams

Curious, highly collaborative scientist with enthusiasm for exploring novel biology

Pay Range for this position: $90,400 - $135,700

The offer range represents the anticipated low and high end of the base pay compensation for this position. The actual compensation offered will be determined by factors such as location, level of experience, education, skills, and other job-related factors. Position may be eligible for sales or performance-based bonuses. Benefits offered by the Company include health insurance, paid time off (PTO), retirement contributions, and other perquisites. For more information click here .

What we offer: We are curious minds that come from a broad range of backgrounds, perspectives, and life experiences. We believe that this variety drives excellence and innovation, strengthening our ability to lead in science and technology. We are committed to creating access and opportunities for all to develop and grow at your own pace. Join us in building a culture of inclusion and belonging that impacts millions and empowers everyone to work their magic and champion human progress!

Apply now and become a part of a team that is dedicated to Sparking Discovery and Elevating Humanity!

Job details

Seniority
Not listed
Function
Drug Discovery & Preclinical Research
Therapeutic area
Not listed
Location
Billerica, Massachusetts, 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 887 comparable Drug Discovery & Preclinical Research roles across 85 biopharma companies.

887Comparable roles tracked
848Currently active
85Companies hiring similar roles
31Countries represented

Salary context

360 of 887 peers report a salary range (USD, annualized)

Peers share this role's job function. This posting doesn't list a seniority level, so peers aren't narrowed by seniority either -- the range below may span more levels than usual.

This roleSubject $90,400/yr – $135,700/yr
Highest disclosed · Vice President, Therapeutics Immunology · ModernaTX, Inc. $272,200/yr – $490,100/yr
Peer group range $0 – $381,150 (median $159,000)

Where these roles are based

Top locations among the 887 comparable roles

United States607
China43
Germany37
Switzerland34
United Kingdom30
France27

+ 25 more countries

Seniority mix

650 of 887 peers have a known seniority level

Senior210
Principal152
Intern/Fellow/Postdoc73
Director62
Associate59
Associate Director28
Senior Director28
Manager25
Executive/VP13

Therapeutic area mix

120 of 887 peers have a known therapeutic area; the rest are genuinely unlabeled, not hidden

Immunology47
Oncology41
Neuroscience17
Cardiovascular / CVRM9
Respiratory2
Vaccines & Infectious Disease2
Rare Disease1
Dermatology & Aesthetics1

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.

40%similar
AstraZeneca Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America Executive/VP
Same function Same country
40%similar
Lilly San Diego, California, United States of America Intern/Fellow/Postdoc
Same function Same country
40%similar
Lilly Indianapolis, Indiana, United States of America Intern/Fellow/Postdoc
Same function Same country
40%similar
Lilly Indianapolis, Indiana, United States of America Principal
Same function Same country
40%similar
Lilly Indianapolis, Indiana, United States of America Principal
Same function Same country
40%similar
Lilly Boston, Massachusetts, United States of America Intern/Fellow/Postdoc
Same function 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.

40%
Executive Director, Global Product Lead, Immunology Research and Development
AstraZeneca · Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States of America · Executive/VP
Function Therapeutic area Seniority Country
40%
Advisor / Senior Advisor, CNS/PNS NAMs – Investigative Toxicology
Lilly · Indianapolis, Indiana, United States of America · Principal
Function Therapeutic area Seniority Country
40%
Senior Scientist Mass Spectrometrist
Pharmacia & Upjohn Company · Groton, United States · Senior
Function Therapeutic area Seniority Country
40%
Senior Principal Research Scientist Engineering
AbbVie · North Chicago, IL · Principal
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.