Data Scientist Agriculture

Overview

Location:

We could consider candidates based at additional locations within Europe.

Application process:

Carefully read instructions in Additional Information section.

We have an exciting opportunity for Data Scientists to join our Global Data Analytics & Predictive Science Team in the Product Biology department. Within these roles you will work on Syngenta historical biological data to uncover patterns and deliver new data‑driven insights for active ingredient development across R&D functions. You will be asked to analyse and interpret the outcome of scientific experiments with your analytical skills as well as machine learning approaches.

Your work will bring forward our understanding of biological performance in crop protection and guide design optimisation and development of novel crop protection solutions.

• Drive historical data analysis of biological field trials by identifying patterns and analysing the impact of key factors including product formulations, rates, mixtures, agricultural practices and environmental conditions on product performance.
• Support domain experts in understanding product performance and identifying analytics opportunities to drive business value.
• Contribute to strategic business initiatives across Crop Protection R&D by interpreting physical chemistry, biokinetics, formulation, marketing and environmental data to support decision‑taking and design laboratory, glasshouse and field trials.
• Guide technical managers in designing field trials aimed at validating scientific hypotheses and model predictions.
• Work with R&D IT and software developers to improve data‑model integrations and deploy applications tailored to shareholders’ needs.
• Monitor and explore new modelling approaches, analytical tools and methodologies.
• Engage with high‑priority digital transformation projects to understand opportunities to accelerate the impact of data science for predictive field trialing.
• Collaborate with colleagues and external partners, integrating complementary capabilities into projects and initiatives.

• Strong foundations in data science at postgraduate level with applications in natural sciences (e.g., biology, ecology, environmental sciences).
• Proven experience with the main data‑science, analytics, modelling and visualization Python libraries, including machine learning and deep learning frameworks.
• Scientific domain knowledge in related fields such as environmental sciences or biology.
• Prior experience developing machine‑learning models relevant to biological or crop protection outcomes.
• Hands‑on experience leveraging generative AI (genAI) approaches for data exploration, model development or research acceleration is a plus.
• Knowledge of data analysis and extracting insights while communicating scientific and data concepts to specialist and non‑specialist audiences.
• Adaptability to diverse business challenges and data types/sources, and ability to learn and utilise a range of analytical tools and methodologies.
• Ability to visualise and tell stories with data to communicate results to stakeholders of varying technical proficiency.
• Analytical problem‑solving skills with innovative thinking, effectively collaborating across diverse teams and managing multiple priorities in a multicultural scientific environment.

We could consider candidates based at additional locations within Europe. You may be required to travel to international R&D locations and collaborate globally.

Due to exceptionally high interest in this position, we will only consider applications that include:
(1) a CV
(2) a cover letter explaining your motivation and suitability for the role
(3) a one‑page document outlining how you would start exploring a 100 MB CSV dataset of efficacy field trial results for a novel crop protection product, including assessments for multiple crop types, trial sites and weather conditions. Please upload your CV, cover letter and the one‑page document in separate files named CV###, Cover Letter### and Answer###, replacing ### with your family name.

• Extensive benefits package including generous pension and bonus…