Translational Medicine Academy fellow in Biomarker Development (BMD) Molecular, Cellular & Soluble Sciences (MCS)

Job Description Summary

Novartis is a place where bright, curious minds combine to solve the world’s toughest healthcare challenges and reimagine medicine together. It’s an inspiring environment for aspiring talent. For those embarking on a career in innovative medicines or moving into the industry it’s an opportunity to gain early exposure, experience and insights that are hard to find anywhere else.

Biomedical Research’s global Translational Medicine (TM) group builds on basic research advances to develop new therapies that address unmet medical need. We are the crucial bridge between drug discovery and clinical application. Through our work, we increase the speed, quality and productivity of drug discovery and development by Novartis and play a pivotal role in bringing innovative medicines to patients.

Biomarker solutions are critical in clinical development to: define the stage/subtype of the disease; predict the effect of medication; select a group of patients who would benefit most from a given therapy; and identify opportunities for development of companion diagnostics. Our scientists identify and use a wide range of biomarkers to investigate a disease, profile a compound’s mechanism of action, potency and likely side effects, select patients who may respond to therapy based on their genetic profile; and develop parallel/expanded indications for the compound.

The TM Academy is a cross-functional program within TM designed for career starters, career changers, and career relaunchers. If you are ready for two transformative years to gain hands-on experience in a diverse, multicultural, global and inclusive environment in early drug development and clinical trials, contributing to innovative programs and projects that help bring breakthrough treatments closer to patients worldwide, then this is the opportunity for you!

 

Job Description

This advert is exclusively for Biomarker Development (BMD) Molecular, Cellular & Soluble Sciences (MCS) within the TM Academy. Other TM Academy roles are advertised separately under:

• REQ‑10076845 – TM Academy Biomarker Development Laboratory Excellence and Operations (BMD LEO)
• REQ-10076855 –TM Academy Clinical Science & Innovation (CS&I) 
• REQ‑10077029 – TM Academy Pharmacokinetic Sciences (PKS) Modeling & Simulation
• REQ‑10077055 – TM Academy Preclinical Safety – Data Science

Location: Basel, Switzerland

Duration of program: 24 months

Program start: 01-September- 2026

Applications are open until 17-May-2026 included.

By submitting your application, you confirm that you would be available to begin the program on 01-September, with final selection decisions expected to be communicated by end of June/early July.

Please note that we can only accept applicants who are eligible to work in Switzerland.

JOB DESCRIPTION

Your journey begins with a basecamp: 4-week immersive blended experience designed to introduce you to our organization, the drug development process, the various departments in Translational Medicine, the clinical trial process and the tools and technical platforms needed for your work.

Throughout the program, fellows reunite for continuous learning focused on soft skills, cross-functional exposure, and thematic introduction series - broadening your perspective beyond your immediate team and function.

As TM Academy fellow in BMD, you will receive training and mentorship, you will be empowered to do and learn and you will work in a diverse, multicultural, global and inclusive environment.

Key learning areas include:

• Work as a tissue biomarker subject matter expert in clinical studies.
• Work with biomarker and pathologist experts to develop tissue biomarker plans and assays for implementation in clinical studies.
• Work with internal and external stakeholders to resolve issues related to tissue biomarker assessment in ongoing clinical trials.
• Learn and contribute to processes tailored to implement tissue biomarkers in clinical trials.
• Work and collaborate with PCS.
• Contribute to technology innovation for human tissue protein assessment.

During the TM Academy you will… 

• build a strong foundation in translational medicine with support from industry experts
• embark on a progressive, blended and flexible learning experience covering conceptual, theoretical and experiential techniques 
• be part of a global network of supportive peers and mentors who will guide you to work and collaborate on meaningful projects that shape the future of medicine
• gain hands-on experience by contributing to and supporting:
  • singleplex and multiplex tissue imaging while contributing to the establishment of critical in‑house capability in spatial data analysis within the BMD‑PCS Tissue Biomarker Laboratory.
  • day‑to‑day implementation of singleplex and multiplex immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence workflows, from histology/ tissue processing and staining through image acquisition, and will contribute to downstream data analysis and standardization efforts supporting innovative Translational Medicine programs. 
• broaden your professional horizon by doing a deep dive in different areas aligned with your interests and based on open opportunities.
• have the opportunity to teach back and mentor new fellows
• Gain broad exposure to translational biomarker science, from experimental execution to data interpretation.
• Develop technical independence, scientific rigor, and cross‑functional collaboration skills in a real TM program setting.
• take laboratory‑based responsibilities (70-80% of time):
  • Perform hands‑on singleplex and multiplex immunohistochemistry and immunofluorescence experiments on multiple platforms, including:
    • Tissue preparation and handling
    • Antibody panel application and staining workflows
    • Instrument operation and run QC
  • Support the establishment and optimization of internal laboratory workflows for tissue imaging within the BMD‑PCS lab environment.
  • Work closely with pathologists and histology experts to ensure biological and technical data quality.
  • Contribute to documentation and standardization of laboratory procedures to enable reproducibility and scalability. 
• Contribute to data analysis (20-30% of time):
  • Contribute to downstream image and spatial data analysis, including:
    • Image quality control and preprocessing
    • Cell segmentation and phenotypic annotation
    • Basic spatial analysis and result visualization
  • Translate laboratory outputs into clear, interpretable results for TM project teams. 

Role requirements

Education

• PhD in life sciences, biomedical sciences, bioengineering, pathology‑related disciplines, or a related field, completed or close to completion by start date.

• Mandatory laboratory expertise:

Demonstrated hands‑on laboratory experience with the following:

- Single and multiplex immunohistochemistry

- Single and multiplex in situ hybridization

• Strong interest in experimental method development and laboratory innovation.

Data & computational skills:

• Mastery of image analysis is expected, using software such as Halo, Visiopharm, etc

• Familiarity with image‑based or single‑cell data analysis is desired; deep expertise is not mandatory at entry.

• Basic experience with Python and/or R for data exploration or analysis is an advantage.

Mindset & working style:

• Comfortable working at the bench on a daily basis

• Curious, detail‑oriented, and motivated by emerging technologies

• Collaborative and open to learning across laboratory, pathology, and data science interfaces

Accessibility and accommodation 
Novartis is committed to working with and providing reasonable accommodation to all individuals. If, because of a medical condition or disability, you need a reasonable 
accommodation for any part of the recruitment process, or in order to receive more detailed information about the essential functions of a position, please send an e-mail to 
diversity.inclusion_ch@novartis.com and let us know the nature of your request and your contact information. Please include the job requisition number in your message. 

 

Skills Desired