Novavax

If you find science, speed, and success exhilarating, you have come to the right place.

Novavax, Inc (Nasdaq:NVAX) is a biotechnology company that creates transformational vaccines that address some of the world’s most pressing infectious diseases. We have more than a decade of experience contending with some of the world’s most devastating diseases, including COVID-19, seasonal influenza, RSV, Ebola, MERS, and SARS. Hard-won lessons and significant advances illustrate that our proven technology has tremendous potential to make a substantial contribution to public health worldwide.

Our scientists are committed to developing vaccine candidates for some of the world’s toughest viral threats by utilizing the power of our innovative recombinant nanoparticle vaccine platform. Our vaccine technology combines the power and speed of genetic engineering with the immunogenicity enhancing properties of our Matrix-M™ adjuvant to efficiently produce highly immunogenic particles targeting some of the most pressing viral infectious diseases.

Novavax, Inc. is headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland with additional facilities in Uppsala, Sweden and Bohumil, Czech Republic.

Job Summary

The Sr. Scientist is integral in the development of proprietary insect cell culture media, and fed-batch process in flasks and bioreactors using the insect cell/baculovirus expression system. This individual will play a leading role on upstream process development including supervise a team of scientists/research associates; maintain insect cell culture, BVI and recombinant protein production, and write technical reports, etc. This person would also participate in the process improvement in small to large-scale (shake flasks and stirred-tank bioreactors up to 250L) to ensure scientifically sound design and scalable upstream processes are created. The ideal candidate should be highly self-motivated, well organized, and very proactive. This position will be located at our Gaithersburg, MD facility

Essential Functions

• Design experiments, execute media development studies, analyze data, make conclusions, and write reports to finalize the insect cell culture media formulation.
• Record all data during the development studies in an organized manner and ensure that data is accurate and correct.
• Perform cell culture and expansion of suspension insect cells in shaker flasks and bioreactors on a daily basis.
• Prepare insect cell culture media and feed solutions, and record all necessary information in a specified format.
• Perform cell growth test, recombinant baculovirus production and protein production in small flasks and bioreactors, and record all relevant data in timely manner.
• Maintain an up-to-date working knowledge of the baculovirus/insect cell expression system, bioreactor operation, and various assays like Rapid Titer assay, plaque assay, SDS-PAGE, Western Blot, etc.
• Perform inoculation, infection, sampling, and harvest processes related to shaker flasks (125 mL – 5L) and bioreactors (3L – 250L).
• Analyze experiment data, make a conclusion, and present them within and outside the team.
• Record all data accurately in physical and/or electronic lab notebook in a timely manner and maintain data integrity.
• Assist in data analysis and write/review/edit reports.
• Assist in the maintenance of department records and material inventories.
• Assist in the maintenance of laboratory equipment by monitoring PM/calibration dates, submitting service request when necessary, installation/induction of new instruments.
• Track and maintain lab supplies by inventorying stock, notifying a designated person when supplies run low, verifying receipt of supplies, and discarding expired reagents regularly.
• Cell Culture activities require periodic weekend/evening/early morning work. Candidate must be flexible in time management.

Supervisory Responsibilities

• Supervise and mentor scientists and/or associates, provide study plans and training as needed, and ensure following company policies.

Required Knowledge, Skills, and Abilities

• Experience in cell culture media development, insect cell culture and baculovirus expression system is plus.
• Excellent aseptic techniques in cell culture.
• Good understanding of bioreactors, capability to set up/execute bioreactor runs, and to resolve issues during runs with minimum supervision.
• Ability to perform design of experiment and statistical analysis, to draw conclusions from experimental data, and to make appropriate recommendations.
• Previous experience and understanding in analytical and molecular biology assays (such as TCID50, plaque assay, ELISA, SDS-PAGE, Western blot, Rapid Titer, etc.).
• Ability to troubleshoot, identify root causes, and systematically resolve problems.
• Strong multi-tasking and organizational skills.
• Excellent verbal and written communication and interpersonal collaboration skills among cross functional teams.
• Proficient in Window based software to include Excel, PowerPoint, Word, and statistical software like JMP.
• Flexible in time management for frequent weekend work.

Education, Experience, Licenses & Certifications

• 4-5 years of biotech/pharmaceutical industry experiences with Ph.D degree, 6-7 years with master’s degree or 8-9 years of with a bachelor’s degree in Biochemistry, Microbiology, Biology, Chemical Engineering, or closely related field

Novavax offers a base salary, annual bonus, equity grants, professional career development/growth opportunities, and a comprehensive benefits package including medical, dental, vision, Rx, STD, LTD, Life, Optional Life, 401(k) plan.

Equal Opportunity Employer/Veterans/Disabled

Novavax is an equal employment opportunity employer. Employment and advancement opportunities are available to all individuals on an at-will basis, regardless of their race, color, national origin, religion, ancestry, citizenship status, military or veteran status, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, marital status, family responsibilities, pregnancy, disability, genetic information, protective hairstyle, or any other characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law.

Except where prohibited by applicable state law, this position requires that you be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 unless you need a reasonable accommodation or qualify for an exemption.