Discovery Postdoctoral Fellow, Target Identification and Mechanistic Biology for Antimalarial Drug Discovery

Internal Job Title: Discovery Postdoctoral Fellow

Position Location: San Diego, CA, USA (Onsite)

* Novartis is unable to offer relocation support for this role: please only apply if this location is accessible for you.

* This position is not eligible for visa sponsorship. Please only apply if you are currently authorized to work in the US for the 3 year duration of the program.

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

Research Opportunity

Malaria remains a major global health challenge, and the molecular targets and mechanisms of action of several promising antimalarial compounds remain incompletely understood. In this Discovery Postdoctoral Fellowship, you will develop and apply innovative target-identification and interactomics approaches to uncover the biological pathways underlying parasite survival and drug response.

The fellow will establish a T7 phage display library representing the blood-stage proteome of Plasmodium falciparum and apply this resource to identify targets and interaction partners of next-generation antimalarial compounds. Using complementary approaches including phage display, mass spectrometry-based proteomics, and computational analyses, the fellow will investigate protein interaction networks and generate mechanistic insights into parasite biology and therapeutic response.

This project combines expertise in malaria biology, phage display technology, and quantitative proteomics within a highly collaborative and multidisciplinary environment. Working closely with scientists across Global Health and Discovery Sciences, the fellow will contribute to fundamental discoveries in parasite biology while developing expertise in state-of-the-art technologies for target identification and mechanism-of-action studies. Successful outcomes are expected to generate impactful publications and provide new opportunities for antimalarial drug discovery.

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:

• Guidance from accomplished scientific leaders and subject matter experts
• Access to advanced technologies, platforms, and research capabilities
• Collaboration across disciplines and organizational boundaries
• A global and diverse community of postdoctoral fellows
• Dedicated programming designed to help fellows thrive throughout their careers.
• Personalized experiential learning opportunities through a Postdoc Practicum that empower fellows to explore new scientific domains, build cross-functional expertise, and expand their impact beyond their primary research project.
• Opportunities to present research, publish in leading journals, and build an international scientific network

We are entering a new era of biomedical research breakthroughs through the convergence of biology, technology, and artificial intelligence tools, and fellows are also supported in engaging with these emerging approaches.

Reimagining Medicine Together

At Novartis, our purpose is to reimagine medicine to improve and extend people’s lives. Through this program, you will grow as a scientist and future leader while contributing to discoveries that may ultimately benefit patients worldwide.

Start Date

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

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

Key Responsibilities:

• Experience in display technologies (phage, yeast, and/or mRNA), small-or large-molecule screening and assay technologies, are highly desired.
• Target identification and verification experiences are a plus.
• You need to be self-driven, highly motivated, and able to work effectively in a very collaborative research environment.
• Strong problem solving, communication and organizational skills are highly desirable.

Essential Requirements:

• PhD (or equivalent doctoral degree) in a relevant scientific discipline completed prior to the fellowship start date. The program is intended for scientists immediately following their PhD training (PhD conferred in 2026 only).
• Demonstrated record of scientific achievement (publications, presentations, patents, or equivalent)
• Strong commitment to learning, innovation, and professional development
• Expertise in display technologies (including phage, yeast, and/or mRNA platforms), along with small- and large-molecule screening and assay technologies
• Experience with molecular biology techniques such as cloning, recombinant DNA manipulation, library construction, protein expression, or related approaches
• Demonstrated ability to independently design, execute, and interpret complex biological experiments and to effectively communicate results to multidisciplinary scientific audiences
• Strong collaborative and problem-solving skills with the ability to work effectively in a highly interdisciplinary research environment.

Desirable Requirements:

• Experience with protein-protein interaction technologies beyond display methods, affinity purification, immunoprecipitation, proximity labeling, or related screening approaches
• Familiarity with mass spectrometry-based proteomics, chemical proteomics, next-generation sequencing, or computational analysis of large biological datasets

How to Apply:

Please submit your CV and cover letter by July 25th, 2026. In your cover letter, please describe your research interests, career aspirations, and how participation in the Novartis Biomedical Research Postdoctoral Fellowship Program will support your long-term development.

Compensation & Benefits:

The starting salary for this position is 87,000 USD per year.

US-based eligible employees will receive a comprehensive benefits package that includes health, life and disability benefits, a 401(k) with company contribution and match, and a variety of other benefits. In addition, employees are eligible for a generous time off package including vacation, personal days, holidays and other leaves.

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