Postdoctoral Research Associate in Drug Design

We are seeking to appoint a Postdoctoral Research Associate to join Prof Philip Biggin's lab in collaboration with Boehringer Ingelheim (BI) to investigate and establish novel methods for protein-ligand affinity prediction that can offer significant speed gains but similar accuracy to absolute binding free energy (ABFE) calculations. This builds on a substantial body of work already performed by this team, but the main objective is to enable these calculations to find use in the early hit-to-lead stages of drug-design.

Applicants should hold a PhD/DPhil or be near completion of a PhD/DPhil in Biochemistry, Chemistry or a related subject and have substantial experience in advanced neural network development, programming, and their use. You will have experience in free energy calculations as well as experience and regular use of/contribution to GitHub or similar code repository. You will also have proven HPC skills and proficiency in Python. Excellent communication skills are expected with the ability to write for publication and present research proposals, and you will be able to demonstrate competence and success in your thesis research (and postdoctoral work if appropriate).

This is a full-time fixed-term post up to 16th April 2025 and is funded by the Boehringer Ingelheim.
The actual starting salary offered will be based on qualifications and relevant skills acquired and will also be determined by the funding available.
What We Offer
Your happiness and wellbeing at work matters to us, so we offer a range of family friendly and financial benefits including:

• An excellent contributory pension scheme


• 38 days annual leave


• A comprehensive range of childcare services


• Family leave schemes


• Cycle loan scheme


• Membership to a variety of social and sports clubs


• Discounted bus travel and Season Ticket travel loans

The University also runs an enormous amount of social groups and sports clubs for those looking for more than just a great place to work.