Merck Hiring 2027 Future Talent Program Co-Op (Vaccines R&D)

Job Description

The Future Talent Program features Cooperative (Co-op) education that lasts 4-6 months and will include one or more projects. These opportunities in our Research Division can provide you with great development and a chance to see if we are the right company for your long-term goals.

Our Research Scientists are our Inventors. We identify and target steps in disease mechanisms or pathways that could be inhibited or enhanced. Our goal is to isolate a compound that is effective against a disease target. Using innovative thinking, state-of-the-art facilities, and robust scientific methodology we collaborate to discover the next medical breakthrough.

Applications are sought for a scientific co-op opportunity in our company's Vaccines and Advanced Biotechnologies Process R&D division. Under the direction of a project mentor, a successful candidate will perform lab-scale process development/scale-up studies, and develop robust, efficient, scalable cell culture processes for vaccine production. Duties may include lab-scale fermentation or cell culture, in-process assay support, process scale-up and engineering, maintaining/coordinating raw material and equipment inventories to support development experiments, technology transfer to later stage development groups, and functioning as a key member of an early-stage process development team. The candidate may also work on pilot-scale campaigns for the GMP manufacture of bulk clinical material. In this role, assignments could encompass aspects of campaign preparation, execution, and closeout of a GMP campaign.

The successful candidate will be expected to demonstrate the ability to convey the results of their work in both verbal and written formats. In addition to the core duties outlined above, the candidate will be expected to keep careful notes, comply with all required training, and maintain focused attention on laboratory safety for themselves and their team.

Education Minimum Requirement

• Candidates must be enrolled in a minimum of a BS/BA in Chemical/Biomedical/Biological Engineering, Bioengineering, Biological Sciences, Biochemistry, Biotechnology, Molecular Biology, Microbiology, or closely related field.

Required Experience and Skills

• Must have the ability to work independently and as part of a team, self-motivation, adaptability, and a positive attitude.
• Must have ability to learn new techniques, perform multiple tasks simultaneously, keep accurate records, follow instructions, and comply with company policies.
• Must have proven ability to work in hands-on laboratory setting.
• Must have effective organization, interpersonal, verbal and written communication skills.
• Must be available to work full-time 4-6 months in 2027 (June - November or March - August).

Preferred Experience and Skills

• Should have direct experience with cell culture/fermentation, upstream process development, and/or expression system development for vaccines and/or biologics is strongly preferred.
• Should have hands-on immunofluorescence, flow cytometry, and/or virometry (flow-based nanoparticle analysis) experience preferred.

To learn more about the PRD team, click: Join Our Process Research & Development Team

Please note that this position may be closed before the posted end date or may remain open longer, at the discretion of the company.

Salary range: The salary range for this role is $39,908 - $111,111