AddressWhen you step into a role, what do you want the purpose of the company you work for to be? How does that align with the individual purpose that motivates your ambition?
As the only independent Medical Research institute in Australia focused on childhood cancer, our purpose is to translate and discover new treatments through world class research, that will treat cancer and reduce its side effects in children and adolescents.
We can save and change lives. At Children’s Cancer Institute we believe that a life should be long. Cancer cuts life short for hundreds of children every year before they’ve even had a chance to make their mark. We aim to not only improve their quality of life but eradicate the cause of their pain.
The Drug Discovery Officer will be involved in complex assay development, high-throughput and/or high content small molecule screening, chemical hit identification, hit-to-lead and lead optimisation, as part of THerapeutic INnovations for Kids (THINK), an end-to-end Drug Discovery and development initiative at Children’s Cancer Institute aimed at finding novel and/or re-purposed drug candidates for commercialisation and/or testing in clinical trials for paediatric illnesses.
This position forms part of the core THINK team, encompassing Drug Discovery activities within the THINK Drug Discovery pipeline and other activities performed by THINK. This position requires experience with assay development, early-stage Drug Discovery, cell biology and an understanding of robotic automation.
As our Drug Discovery Officer your purpose will be to:
- Establish and use novel biochemical and cell-based assays for Drug Discovery and development.
- Generate experimental data for preclinical data packages suitable for potential commercialisation.
- Contribute towards the establishment of a fully operational and highly functional academic Drug Discovery program.
- Collaborate effectively with multiple research teams (within CCI and externally), having a wide range of skills and expertise in Drug Discovery and development, to establish a robust Drug Discovery project portfolio.
- Generate project proposals, funding applications, and project reports as required.
- Present data at relevant internal research meetings.
- Implement and maintain data and project management systems for THINK including ELN and all associated platforms required to provide cohesive data capture and produce preclinical data packages suitable for commercialisation.
- Develop collaborative relationships with external research teams and technology experts contributing to the THINK project pipeline.
- Contribute to the training and supervision of students and new team members.
To succeed you will have…
- Advanced analytical and problem-solving skills with strong attention to detail.
- Demonstrated initiative and ability to work autonomously.
- A flexible attitude to work and be a strong team player.
- Laboratory and project management skills.
- Strong commitment to scientific rigour, being able to plan and execute well controlled experiments and sound interpretation of data.
- Excellent listening, verbal, and written communication skills.
- Technical and scientific skills in biochemical and cell biology, assay development for drug screening and drug development, drug testing methodologies in an in vitro setting, primary cell culture, and early-stage Drug Discovery.
We will support you to be your best with benefits that include but are not limited to:
- Access to our ‘FlexBEST’ program – true flexibility from day 1 - options include hybrid working, school-friendly hours, and 9-day working fortnight
- Focus on employee wellbeing, including a leading EAP program, and up to 5 gifted wellbeing days off (paid) per year
- Investment in leadership development and career advancement opportunities
Join a group of dedicated people in a performance-driven environment to achieve success and discover what it's like to look forward to coming to work every day and make a real difference.
A detailed job description and additional information about Children's Cancer Institute can be found on our website at: https://www.ccia.org.au/careers-study . We embrace diversity and encourage applications from people from diverse backgrounds and cultures.
To apply, please click the 'APPLY' link and forward both your CV AND cover letter (mandatory) clearly addressing the qualifications, experience and skills required.
