Principal Scientist, Translational Medicine, Neuroscience

Merck seeks a physician-scientist to lead translational medicine and early clinical development for neuroscience therapeutics. The role bridges discovery and clinical research, with responsibilities spanning target validation, clinical trial design, biomarker development, and regulatory support for neurologic and psychiatric disease programs.

Responsibilities

• Collaborate with discovery teams to identify, validate, and design preclinical and clinical experiments for novel neurologic/psychiatric targets
• Lead cross-functional early development teams and clinical pharmacology studies across all development phases, including special population studies
• Develop and execute clinical biomarker validation strategies incorporating blood/tissue sampling, imaging, electrophysiology, and wearable devices
• Support regulatory filings through preparation of documents and presentations for programs in development
• Engage with internal and external scientific community through consultations, publications, and conference presentations on disease and therapeutic areas

Requirements

• MD or MD/PhD (or international equivalent)
• Documented research experience with scientific publications and demonstrated achievement
• Completed or anticipated completion of residency training in clinical medicine
• Strong interpersonal, writing, and presentation skills with team collaboration ability
• Training or board certification in neurology, psychiatry, or related neurologic/psychiatric discipline (preferred)
• Academic faculty experience (preferred)
• Translational research or early clinical development background (helpful but not required)