Associate Scientist, R&D

POSITION SUMMARY:

Join Natera's Molecular Biology product development team to transition scientific concepts into scalable, high-throughput automated oncology diagnostics. In this role, you will work across functional teams to advance our cell-free DNA oncology product portfolio, directly contributing to our mission of changing disease management through proactive testing. We look for a rigorous, execution-focused scientist who connects molecular biology principles directly to clinical oncology diagnostics and wants to own the design, validation, and post-launch performance of clinical assays. This position requires the flexibility to step in outside standard operating hours when necessary to resolve critical automation or assay failures, ensuring patient sample turnaround times remain unaffected. You will develop and launch high-throughput automated assays, balancing scientific precision with the execution speed required for clinical patient care.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES:

* Design, develop, and validate automated high-throughput Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) assays to be run in a commercial CLIA laboratory * Own post-launch assay performance by troubleshooting production issues and executing root-cause analysis on automation, reagent, peripheral equipment, and assay failures * Take ownership of designing and executing moderate to high complexity studies, including stability, guard-banding, reproducibility, repeatability, and validation * Maintain complete documentation of experimental results, supporting project verification and timely execution * Write clear technical documentation and Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), and train clinical laboratory operations operators on protocols

• Oversee formal assay and automation validation activities
• Identify areas for continuous improvement and actively contribute to

introducing better practices to optimize production workflows and shorten clinical turnaround time (TAT) for patient samples

QUALIFICATIONS:

* BA/BS degree with 6+ years of experience, or MS degree with 3+ years of experience in assay development and automation for genomics * Demonstrated track record of development and validation of automated protocols for CLIA regulated environments

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITIES:

* Strong understanding of the chemistry underlying nucleic acid extraction, PCR, NGS library preparation, and hybrid capture technologies * Hands-on experience in reagent preparation and quality control for NGS-based assays * Experience implementing, optimizing, and troubleshooting high-throughput automated assays utilizing liquid handling robotics * Statistical data analysis experience using JMP is required; bioinformatics programming languages such as Python or R are a plus * Strong individual contributor who takes ownership of individual experiments while collaborating across functions to meet shared team goals * Experience working in a regulated laboratory environment under CLIA/CAP, NYSDOH, or IVD guidelines is preferred * Clear communication and precise organizational, record-keeping, and planning skills to train laboratory operators and maintain clinical quality standards * Ability to collaborate cross-functionally with adjacent internal groups, including CLIA, laboratory operations, Quality Assurance, Automation, and Research The pay range is listed and actual compensation packages are based on a wide array of factors unique to each candidate, including but not limited to skill set, years & depth of experience, certifications and specific office location. This may differ in other locations due to cost of labor considerations. Austin, TX

$84,000—$105,000 USD

OUR OPPORTUNITY

Natera™ is a global leader in cell-free DNA (cfDNA) testing, dedicated to oncology, women’s health, and organ health. Our aim is to make personalized genetic testing and diagnostics part of the standard of care to protect health and enable earlier and more targeted interventions that lead to longer, healthier lives. The Natera team consists of highly dedicated statisticians, geneticists, doctors, laboratory scientists, business professionals, software engineers and many other professionals from world-class institutions, who care deeply for our work and each other. When you join Natera, you’ll work hard and grow quickly. Working alongside the elite of the industry, you’ll be stretched and challenged, and take pride in being part of a company that is changing the landscape of genetic disease management.

WHAT WE OFFER

Competitive Benefits - Employee benefits include comprehensive medical, dental, vision, life and disability plans for eligible employees and their dependents. Additionally, Natera employees and their immediate families receive free testing in addition to fertility care benefits. Other benefits include pregnancy and baby bonding leave, 401k benefits, commuter benefits and much more. We also offer a generous employee referral program! For more information, visit [ Natera is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. We are committed to ensuring a diverse and inclusive workplace environment, and welcome people of different backgrounds, experiences, abilities and perspectives. Inclusive collaboration benefits our employees, our community and our patients, and is critical to our mission of changing the management of disease worldwide. All qualified applicants are encouraged to apply, and will be considered without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, age, veteran status, disability or any other legally protected status. We also consider qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with applicable laws. If you are based in California, we encourage you to read this important information for California residents. Link: [ Please be advised that Natera will reach out to candidates with a @natera.com [ email domain ONLY. Email communications from all other domain names are not from Natera or its employees and are fraudulent. Natera does not request interviews via text messages and does not ask for personal information until a candidate has engaged with the company and has spoken to a recruiter and the hiring team. Natera takes cyber crimes seriously, and will collaborate with law enforcement authorities to prosecute any related cyber crimes. For more information: - BBB announcement on job scams [ - FBI Cyber Crime resource page [