Senior Scientist, Translational Immunology – Cancer Vaccines

Role Summary

Senior Scientist in Translational Immunology focused on bridging pre-clinical vaccine development with human clinical trials in oncology and infectious disease. You will design, conduct, and analyze experiments to enhance vaccine-induced immunity and translate findings into novel vaccine technologies for cancer and infectious diseases. Location: Gaithersburg, MD.

Responsibilities

• Design and conduct in vitro assays to assess vaccine-specific cellular responses and translate findings into novel vaccine technologies for oncology and infectious disease.
• Develop, optimize, and execute innovative assays to identify and quantify cellular targets and efficacy readouts relevant to vaccine performance.
• Stay current with immunology, oncology, and vaccinology literature and emerging platforms; share insights across Early Vaccines and Immune Therapies.
• Evaluate new technologies and assay formats for human immune function, driving continuous improvement and innovation.
• Communicate results in team and departmental meetings and represent the group at scientific conferences.
• Maintain high-quality electronic records and ensure work complies with Good Laboratory Practice (GLP), Safety, Health and Environment (SHE) standards, and relevant internal/external regulations.

Qualifications

• Required: Ph.D. in Immunology or related scientific discipline with 3+ years post-doctoral and/or industry experience.
• Required: Strong foundation in immunology demonstrated by publications and applied research in infectious disease and tumor-immune interactions.
• Required: Extensive hands-on experience with multi-color flow cytometry including panel design, staining fluency, compensation, and data analysis/interpretation.
• Required: Proficiency in functional cell-based assays to evaluate therapeutic mechanisms of action (e.g., cytotoxicity, T/NK cell activation, cytokine readouts).
• Required: End-to-end proficiency with single-cell sequencing techniques (scRNA-seq, CITE-seq, ATAC-seq) including panel/design, library preparation, QC, and analysis.
• Required: Deep understanding of tumor biology, immune-oncological techniques, and experimental model systems.
• Required: Proven ability to develop, validate and troubleshoot assays and to conceptualize and evaluate novel therapeutics.
• Required: Strong cross-functional collaboration skills and ability to communicate results clearly across discovery, translational, and data science groups.

Skills

• Flow cytometry expertise
• Cell-based assay development and optimization
• Single-cell sequencing techniques and data analysis
• Tumor biology and immune-oncology methodologies
• Assay development and innovation
• Collaborative teamwork and scientific communication

Education

• Ph.D. in Immunology or related field required.