{"id":2293114,"url":"https://alion.io/job/ucb-principal-scientist","title":"Principal scientist","company":{"id":1798748,"name":"UCB","domain":"ucb.com","url":"https://alion.io/company/ucb-com","size_band":"5000+","is_staffing_agency":false,"employer_type":"direct","is_intermediary":false,"listed_via":null,"ats_vendor":"Phenom","truth_index":null},"role":"Science & Research","role_family":"Science & Research","seniority":"lead","employment_type":null,"work_mode":"hybrid","remote_scope":null,"remote_scope_basis":null,"remote_working_hours":null,"hiring_geo_confidence":"structured","locations":["Slough, United Kingdom"],"countries":["GB"],"hiring_countries":[],"hiring_countries_total":0,"salary":null,"salary_estimate":{"min_usd":52000,"max_usd":110000,"period":"year","method":"role_seniority_country_remote_cell","sample_n":21},"experience_years_min":null,"visa_sponsorship":false,"relocation_package":false,"has_equity":false,"technologies":[],"status":"closed","first_seen_at":"2026-09-27T00:00:00Z","employer_posted_date":"2026-09-27","last_verified_at":"2026-10-11T23:11:04Z","board_verified":false,"closed_at":"2026-10-11T23:11:04Z","days_open":14,"trust":{"level":"not_scored","repost_count":null,"flags":[],"days_open":14},"description":"Make your mark for patients\nWe are looking for a Principal Scientist - SPR and Biophysical Assays who is innovative, collaborative, and scientifically rigorous to join our team in In Vitro Pharmacology, based at our UCB campus in Slough, Berkshire, United Kingdom.\nAbout the role\nAs a Principal Scientist, you will play a key role in advancing drug discovery programs across Patient Solutions by generating critical SPR (Surface Plasmon Resonance) and biophysical assay data. You will provide scientific leadership, influence project decisions, and help shape the future of biophysical screening capabilities. You will contribute from target validation through candidate selection while driving innovation, continuous improvement, and the adoption of new technologies.\nWho you will work with\nYou will work within the In Vitro Pharmacology organization and collaborate closely with multidisciplinary project teams across research sites. You will partner with scientists working on antibodies, small molecules, and emerging therapeutic modalities while acting as a technical expert in SPR and biophysical assays. You will also mentor junior scientists and help strengthen capabilities across the wider discovery community.\nWhat you will do\nYou will design, develop, and optimize SPR and biophysical assays for therapeutic discovery programs.\nYou will generate binding, affinity, kinetic, competition, and epitope binning data to support decisions.\nYou will autonomously lead complex studies addressing challenging scientific questions and novel therapeutic modalities.\nYou will champion new technologies, automation solutions, and continuous improvement initiatives within the team.\nYou will present high-quality scientific data and influence project strategy across multidisciplinary teams.\nYou will mentor scientists, share expertise, and contribute to a collaborative research environment.\nProvide coaching and scientific guidance to junior team members, supporting their development and contributing to a collaborative learning environment.\nWhere appropriate, contribute to people leadership activities, including mentoring, onboarding, and supporting the development of fellow scientists.\nInterested?\nFor this role, we are looking for the following education, experience, and skills:\nPhD, Master's degree, or equivalent experience in a relevant scientific discipline.\nExtensive expertise applying SPR to antibody and/or small molecule discovery programs.\nProven experience developing, optimizing, and validating complex biophysical assays independently.\nStrong understanding of drug discovery processes and therapeutic candidate progression.\nExcellent communication skills with experience influencing multidisciplinary scientific teams.\nAdaptable, highly organized, and enthusiastic about implementing innovative technologies and approaches.\nExperience mentoring, coaching, or supporting the development of scientists is highly valued.\nPrevious team leadership or line management experience would be advantageous but is not essential.\nDemonstrated ability to influence, guide, and develop colleagues within a scientific environment is appreciated.\nAt UCB, we are committed to building an inclusive environment where everyone can thrive and contribute their unique perspectives. If you are passionate about advancing innovative medicines through cutting-edge biophysical sciences, we would love to hear from you.\nAre you ready to ‘go beyond’ to create value and make your mark for patients? If this sounds like you, then we would love to hear from you!\nAbout us\nUCB is a global biopharmaceutical company, focusing on neurology and immunology. We are over 9.000 people in all four corners of the globe, inspired by patients and driven by science.\nWhy work with us?\nAt UCB, we don’t just complete tasks, we create value. We aren’t afraid to push forward, collaborate, and innovate to make our mark for patients. We have a caring, supportive culture where everyone feels included, respected, and has equal opportunities to do their best work. We ‘go beyond’ to create value for our patients, and always with a human focus, whether that’s on our patients, our employees, or our planet. Working for us, you will discover a place where you can grow, and have the freedom to carve your own career path to achieve your full potential.\nAt UCB, we’ve embraced a hybrid-first approach to work, bringing teams together in local hubs to foster collaborative curiosity. Unless expressly stated in the description or precluded by the nature of the position, roles are hybrid with 40% of your time spent in the office.\nUCB is an equal opportunity employer. All employment decisions will be made without regard to any characteristic protected by applicable laws.\nShould you require any adjustments to our process to assist you in demonstrating your strengths and capabilities contact us on . Please note should your enquiry not relate to adjustments; we will not be able to support you through this channel.","description_format":"text","description_chars":5029,"description_truncated":false,"requirements":{"experience_years_min":null,"management_years_min":null,"team_size_min":null,"manages_managers":false,"education":{"level":"master","optional":true},"security_clearance":false,"languages":[]},"benefits":[],"hiring_locations":[{"name":"United Kingdom","iso":"GB","kind":"country"}],"hiring_excludes":[],"relocation_offered":false,"industries":["Biotechnology","Health Care","Biologics & Biosimilars"],"lifecycle":[{"event":"open","at":"2026-10-11T19:19:30Z"},{"event":"close","at":"2026-10-11T23:11:04Z"}],"visa":[],"liveness":null,"pay":null,"html_url":"https://alion.io/job/ucb-principal-scientist","json_url":"https://alion.io/job/ucb-principal-scientist.json","meta":{"generated_at":"2026-10-12T00:00:39Z","cache_seconds":300,"methodology":"https://alion.io/methodology","terms":"https://alion.io/terms","contact":"https://alion.io/contact","api":"https://alion.io/developers","about":"Alion is a live layer of people, companies and AI agents: who they are, whether they are real and active right now, what they do and how to work with them, readable by people and by agents and paid per call.","catalog":"https://alion.io/catalog.json","usage":{"tier":"crawler_verified","counted_by":"address","units_charged":1,"used_today":12,"day_limit":null,"remaining_today":null,"minute_limit":300,"resets_at":"2026-10-13T00:00:00Z"}},"offers":[{"id":"company.slices","title":"One company in depth, by slice","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.02,"usd":0.002,"plus_per_slice":{"credits":0.05,"usd":0.005}},"unit":"per company, plus each slice with data","note":"the employer in depth","call":{"mcp_tool":"get_company","arguments":{"id":1798748},"rest":"https://alion.io/mcp/rest/get_company?id=1798748"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.slices&for=job%2Fucb-principal-scientist"},{"id":"market.stats","title":"A market slice: pay, demand and time to fill","status":"live","price":{"credits":1,"usd":0.1},"unit":"per slice","note":"pay, demand and time to fill for this role and place","call":{"mcp_tool":"market_stats"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=market.stats&for=job%2Fucb-principal-scientist"},{"id":"job.search","title":"Open jobs by role, technology, place, pay and visa","status":"live","price":{"credits":0.02,"usd":0.002},"unit":"per posting in a list","note":"similar open postings","call":{"mcp_tool":"search_jobs"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=job.search&for=job%2Fucb-principal-scientist"},{"id":"company.verify","title":"Is this company real and active right now","status":"pilot","price":null,"unit":"per company","request":{"url":"https://alion.io/catalog/request","method":"POST","body":"{\"offer\": \"company.verify\", \"for\": \"job/ucb-principal-scientist\", \"note\": \"what you need it for\"}"},"human":"https://alion.io/catalog?offer=company.verify&for=job%2Fucb-principal-scientist"}]}