AbbVie Posted September 15, 2026

Senior Scientist I - Cell Culture Process Development

Worcester, MA Full-time
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AbbVie 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

Company Description

About AbbVie

AbbVie's mission is to discover and deliver innovative medicines and solutions that solve serious health issues today and address the medical challenges of tomorrow. We strive to have a remarkable impact on people's lives across several key therapeutic areas including immunology, oncology and neuroscience - and products and services in our Allergan Aesthetics portfolio. For more information about AbbVie, please visit us at  www.abbvie.com . Follow @abbvie on  LinkedIn,   Facebook ,  Instagram ,  X  and  YouTube.

Job Description

We are seeking an enthusiastic and creative hands-on senior scientist to join the Cell Culture Process Development group within PDS&T Biologics at AbbVie Bioresearch Center in Worcester, MA. As part of the Cell Culture Development organization, you will support process development and technology transfer activities for cell culture processes, contributing to the clinical manufacturing and commercialization of therapeutic proteins in the AbbVie pipeline. Additionally, you will be a part of a team that provides subject matter expertise and experimental support for the production of commercial biologics. The ideal candidate will work effectively both independently and collaboratively within a dynamic team environment.

Key Responsibilities:

Develop and characterize highly-productive CHO cell culture processes suitable for cGMP biotherapeutic manufacturing within project timelines, performing technical transfer, and manufacturing support activities.

Lead and execute scientific research and development initiatives to reduce cost of goods (COGs) by significantly improving platform processes and workflows, deepening scientific understanding, and applying new methods and technologies. These include cell metabolic modeling, perfusion technology, and a suite of Process Analytical Technology (PAT) tools.

Design, execute, and analyze cell culture experiments using Design of Experiments (DOE) principles and report data summary packages for multi-variate analysis.

Work collaboratively and cross-functionally with colleagues in other functional areas (Analytical Development, Cell Line Development, Discovery, Manufacturing,  and Quality). Effectively communicate scientific data and concepts to internal and external audiences through reports, presentations and manuscripts. Author and review technical reports, protocols, and other key documents.

Understand and adhere to corporate standards regarding code of conduct, safety, documentation and GMP compliance.

Qualifications

Bachelor’s Degree or equivalent education with minimum 10 years of experience, or Master’s Degree or equivalent education with minimum 8 years of experience. Or PhD with no minimum years of experience, in chemical engineering, biochemical engineering, or a related discipline.

Proven ability to independently design experiments, troubleshoot technical issues, and deliver high-quality scientific output.

Strong understanding of cell biology with extensive hands-on experience with mammalian suspension cell culture

Theoretical and practical knowledge to carry out the job functions.

Preferred Qualifications:

Understanding of cell culture processes (e.g., cell culture process development, process scale up and scale down, recombinant protein production, protein characterization).

Demonstrated experience in cell metabolic modeling and process modeling using mechanistic model and/or machine learning algorithms.

Familiarity with bioreactor perfusion processes.

Demonstrated experience in applying Process Analytical Technology (PAT) to improve cell culture processes.

Hands-on experience with upstream mammalian suspension cell culture using bench scale bioreactors, AMBR, and shake flasks.

Excellent interpersonal and communication skills. Strong scientific curiosity with a passion for problem-solving and optimization. Self-motivated with excellent attention to detail and ability to multi-task. Strong organizational, planning and trouble-shooting skills.

Additional Information

Applicable only to applicants applying to a position in any location with pay disclosure requirements under state or local law: ​

The compensation range described below is the range of possible base pay compensation that the Company believes in good faith it will pay for this roleat  the time of this posting based on the job grade for this position. Individual compensation paid within this range will depend on manyfactors  including  geographic location, and we may ultimately  pay more or less than the posted range. This range may be  modified in the future. ​

We offer a comprehensive package of benefits including paid time off (vacation, holidays, sick), medical/dental/vision insurance and 401(k) to eligible employees.​

This job is eligible to  participate in our short-term incentive programs. ​

Note: No amount of pay is  considered to be wages or compensation until such amount isearned,  vested,  and determinable. The amount and availability of  any bonus, commission, incentive, benefits, or any other form of compensation and benefits that areallocable to a   particular employee  remains in the Company's sole and absolute discretion unless and until paid and may be  modified at the Company’s sole and absolutediscretion,  consistent with applicable law.

AbbVie is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to operating with integrity, driving innovation, transforming lives and serving our community.  Equal Opportunity Employer/Veterans/Disabled.

US & Puerto Rico only - to learn more, visit  https://www.abbvie.com/join-us/equal-employment-opportunity-employer.html

US & Puerto Rico applicants seeking a reasonable accommodation, click here to learn more:

https://www.abbvie.com/join-us/reasonable-accommodations.html

Job details

Seniority
Senior
Function
Manufacturing & CMC
Therapeutic area
Not listed
Location
Worcester, MA
Employment type
Full-time

How this role compares

Computed from every other active Manufacturing & CMC role in our database, not just this employer's listings.

We currently track 489 comparable Senior Manufacturing & CMC roles across 75 biopharma companies.

489Comparable roles tracked
477Currently active
75Companies hiring similar roles
31Countries represented

Salary context

207 of 489 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 $96,500/yr – $183,500/yr
Lowest disclosed · Associate Director, Digital Scientific Workflows · Merck $0/hr – $0/hr (≈ $0–$0/yr)
Highest disclosed · Senior Principal Scientist, Upstream Process Development Group Lead · Merck $190,800/yr – $300,300/yr
Peer group range $0 – $245,550 (median $150,600)

Where these roles are based

Top locations among the 489 comparable roles

United States325
India38
Netherlands20
Ireland16
United Kingdom9
Singapore8

+ 25 more countries

Seniority mix

489 of 489 peers have a known seniority level

Senior323
Principal92
Associate Director74

Therapeutic area mix

2 of 489 peers have a known therapeutic area; the rest are genuinely unlabeled, not hidden

Vaccines & Infectious Disease2

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
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Same function Same seniority Same country
60%similar
AbbVie North Chicago, IL Senior
Same function Same seniority Same country
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.

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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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.