Principal Research Scientist, Medicinal Chemistry
IDEAYA Biosciences
September 01, 2026
On-site
South San Francisco, CA
Clinical Research and Development
Position Summary
- Discovery medicinal chemist to deliver drug discovery pipeline goals as part of dynamic, cross-functional teams. Onsite in South San Francisco headquarters five days per week.
Responsibilities
- Apply modern synthetic techniques to prepare complex chemical targets and deliver high-quality molecules at productive rates.
- Design high-confidence reaction sequences that avoid known liabilities and reduce difficult purifications.
- Rapidly gather reaction information and troubleshoot problematic transformations.
- Plan ahead and multitask in and out of the lab to maintain high productivity.
- Deliver molecules at scales from 10 mg to >25 g.
- Support external synthetic chemistry resources to maintain high productivity.
- Use SAR data to propose targets addressing critical issues within a chemical series.
- Champion design and synthesis into new directions as needed.
- Clearly communicate results and strategy to influence others.
- Use structure-based design and modern computational tools to improve affinity/selectivity.
Requirements
- Ph.D. in synthetic organic chemistry; 3–8 years of pharmaceutical industry medicinal chemistry experience.
- Strong expertise in synthetic organic chemistry (asymmetric reactions, modern cross-coupling), purification/spectroscopic characterization.
- Proven lab productivity while maintaining safety standards.
- Ability to develop practical, scalable chemistry.
- Strong troubleshooting and creative solution skills; good scientific recordkeeping.
- Ability to prioritize and focus target design efforts on critical lead issues.
- Ability to multi-task in fast-paced environments; positive attitude and strong work ethic.
- Excellent oral and written communication; experience in diverse multidisciplinary teams.
- Strong medicinal chemistry knowledge (structure-based design, SAR, multi-parameter optimization, physicochemical/ADME/pharmacology) and ability to use computational tools; desire to learn and mentor.
Benefits (Total Rewards)
- Competitive total rewards including medical/dental/vision, 401(k), ESPP, and wellness programs.
Application Instructions
- None provided in the job description text.
- Discovery medicinal chemist to deliver drug discovery pipeline goals as part of dynamic, cross-functional teams. Onsite in South San Francisco headquarters five days per week.
Responsibilities
- Apply modern synthetic techniques to prepare complex chemical targets and deliver high-quality molecules at productive rates.
- Design high-confidence reaction sequences that avoid known liabilities and reduce difficult purifications.
- Rapidly gather reaction information and troubleshoot problematic transformations.
- Plan ahead and multitask in and out of the lab to maintain high productivity.
- Deliver molecules at scales from 10 mg to >25 g.
- Support external synthetic chemistry resources to maintain high productivity.
- Use SAR data to propose targets addressing critical issues within a chemical series.
- Champion design and synthesis into new directions as needed.
- Clearly communicate results and strategy to influence others.
- Use structure-based design and modern computational tools to improve affinity/selectivity.
Requirements
- Ph.D. in synthetic organic chemistry; 3–8 years of pharmaceutical industry medicinal chemistry experience.
- Strong expertise in synthetic organic chemistry (asymmetric reactions, modern cross-coupling), purification/spectroscopic characterization.
- Proven lab productivity while maintaining safety standards.
- Ability to develop practical, scalable chemistry.
- Strong troubleshooting and creative solution skills; good scientific recordkeeping.
- Ability to prioritize and focus target design efforts on critical lead issues.
- Ability to multi-task in fast-paced environments; positive attitude and strong work ethic.
- Excellent oral and written communication; experience in diverse multidisciplinary teams.
- Strong medicinal chemistry knowledge (structure-based design, SAR, multi-parameter optimization, physicochemical/ADME/pharmacology) and ability to use computational tools; desire to learn and mentor.
Benefits (Total Rewards)
- Competitive total rewards including medical/dental/vision, 401(k), ESPP, and wellness programs.
Application Instructions
- None provided in the job description text.