Discovery Postdoctoral Fellow, Oncology Translational Research

Novartis Biomedical Research Postdoctoral Fellowship Program

We are excited to invite applications for the Novartis Biomedical Research Postdoctoral Fellowship Program, a unique training opportunity designed for exceptional early-career scientists eager to tackle some of the most challenging problems in biomedical research and drug discovery. As a Discovery Postdoctoral Fellow, you will join the Oncology Translational Research team in Cambridge, Massachusetts and pursue an innovative research project at the forefront of biomedical science and drug discovery.

You will work alongside leading scientists in a highly collaborative, multidisciplinary environment while gaining exposure to the broader ecosystem that translates scientific discovery into medicines. Our fellows are empowered to ask bold scientific questions, apply cutting-edge technologies, and develop approaches with the potential to transform patient care. The Novartis Biomedical Research Postdoctoral Fellowship Program is designed to develop the next generation of scientific leaders and power the future of medicine through rigorous research, immersive learning, and exposure to emerging technologies including artificial intelligence in biomedical research.

Internal

Job Title:

Discovery Postdoctoral Fellow

Position Location:

Cambridge, MA, onsite

This position is not eligible for visa sponsorship.

Please note that relocation support is not available for this position.

This is a full-time training position of up to three years in duration.

The start date for the 2026 Novartis   Postdoctoral Fellowship Program cohort is October 1, 2026. Please confirm your availability to meet this date in your cover letter.

Cell surface proteins play critical roles in mediating interactions between cells and their environment and represent important therapeutic targets in oncology, including radioligand therapies, antibody-drug conjugates, and immune cell engagers. This three-year postdoctoral fellowship, co-mentored by scientists from Oncology Translational Research and Discovery Sciences, offers a unique opportunity to build a broadly enabling surface proteomics platform while uncovering disease-relevant cancer proteoforms that may reveal novel therapeutic targets and translational biomarkers.

You will:

• Work with expert translational, proteomics, and microscopy teams using state-of-the-art instrumentation and technologies.
• Develop and validate novel cell surface proteoform enrichment and mass spectrometry characterization methods in vitro.
• Apply validated approaches to identify and characterize surface protein and proteoform composition across cancer models.
• Investigate how proteoform composition differs across biomarker-defined cancer subtypes and evolves during treatment response and resistance.
• Optimize methods for tissue analysis and extend findings from cell culture into preclinical and patient-derived samples.
• Contribute to the identification of novel therapeutic targets and translational biomarkers.

Key Responsibilities

• Co-create a comprehensive research plan with scientific mentors, integrating emerging scientific literature and innovative methodologies.
• Execute experiments, interpret results, and drive scientific decision-making.
• Develop and validate novel in vitro methods for cell surface proteoform enrichment and mass spectrometry-based characterization.
• Apply scalable approaches to characterize surface protein and proteoform composition in models of therapeutic response and resistance.
• Optimize methods for tissue-based applications and translational studies.
• Communicate scientific findings to cross-functional project teams and key stakeholders.
• Present research at internal and external scientific meetings.
• Publish novel discoveries in peer-reviewed scientific journals.

Why Join the Program?

The Novartis Biomedical Research Postdoctoral Fellowship Program is designed to develop the next generation of scientific leaders and power the future of medicine through rigorous research, and immersive learning experiences, including the implementation of AI tools in biomedical research.

Postdoctoral Research Fellows benefit from:

• Mentorship from accomplished scientific leaders…