Senior Research Scientist, Medicinal Chemistry
IDEAYA Biosciences
September 01, 2026
On-site
South San Francisco, CA
Clinical Research and Development
Position Summary
- Discovery medicinal chemist for cross-functional drug discovery pipeline work; onsite in South San Francisco, required 5 days/week.
What you’ll do:
- Apply modern synthetic techniques to prepare complex chemical targets and deliver high-quality molecules at high productivity.
- Design high-confidence reaction sequences avoiding known liabilities and reducing difficult purifications.
- Gather reaction information and troubleshoot problematic transformations.
- Plan ahead and multitask in and out of the lab.
- Deliver molecules on scales from 10 mg to >25 g.
- Help manage external synthetic chemistry resources to high productivity.
- Follow SAR data to propose targets that address critical issues.
- Use structure-based design skills to improve affinity/selectivity.
- Clearly present results in various forums.
Requirements:
- Ph.D. in synthetic organic chemistry; 0–3 years pharmaceutical industry medicinal chemistry experience.
- Expertise in synthetic organic chemistry (asymmetric reactions, modern cross-coupling); knowledge of chemistry literature; purification and spectroscopic characterization.
- Strong scientific recordkeeping.
- High lab productivity; synthesize complex structures with safety standards.
- Develop new practical, scalable chemistry.
- Troubleshoot synthetic problems with practical/creative solutions.
- Excellent oral and written communication.
- Multi-tasking/prioritization in a fast-paced environment; positive attitude.
- Works well in multidisciplinary teams.
- Knowledge of medicinal chemistry concepts (structure-based design, SAR, multi-parameter optimization, physicochemical/ADME/pharmacology principles).
- Desire to continually learn and stay current.
Total Rewards (highlights): medical/dental/vision, 401k, ESPP, wellness; merit-based increases and short-term incentive/stock option eligibility.
Expected salary range (if applicable): $148,000–$183,000.
- Discovery medicinal chemist for cross-functional drug discovery pipeline work; onsite in South San Francisco, required 5 days/week.
What you’ll do:
- Apply modern synthetic techniques to prepare complex chemical targets and deliver high-quality molecules at high productivity.
- Design high-confidence reaction sequences avoiding known liabilities and reducing difficult purifications.
- Gather reaction information and troubleshoot problematic transformations.
- Plan ahead and multitask in and out of the lab.
- Deliver molecules on scales from 10 mg to >25 g.
- Help manage external synthetic chemistry resources to high productivity.
- Follow SAR data to propose targets that address critical issues.
- Use structure-based design skills to improve affinity/selectivity.
- Clearly present results in various forums.
Requirements:
- Ph.D. in synthetic organic chemistry; 0–3 years pharmaceutical industry medicinal chemistry experience.
- Expertise in synthetic organic chemistry (asymmetric reactions, modern cross-coupling); knowledge of chemistry literature; purification and spectroscopic characterization.
- Strong scientific recordkeeping.
- High lab productivity; synthesize complex structures with safety standards.
- Develop new practical, scalable chemistry.
- Troubleshoot synthetic problems with practical/creative solutions.
- Excellent oral and written communication.
- Multi-tasking/prioritization in a fast-paced environment; positive attitude.
- Works well in multidisciplinary teams.
- Knowledge of medicinal chemistry concepts (structure-based design, SAR, multi-parameter optimization, physicochemical/ADME/pharmacology principles).
- Desire to continually learn and stay current.
Total Rewards (highlights): medical/dental/vision, 401k, ESPP, wellness; merit-based increases and short-term incentive/stock option eligibility.
Expected salary range (if applicable): $148,000–$183,000.