The Institute of Cancer Research
Higher Scientific Officer - Cell Biology
Get notified of more jobs like this · No spam, ever
How your CV stacks up
Upload your CV to see how well it fits this job role
?%
Salary: £40,850 - £43,000 per annum. Commencement on the salary range is subject to comparable skills and experience.
Reporting to: Joanna Loizou
Duration of Contract: Fixed Term for 2 years
Hours per week: 35 hours per week (Full Time)
Location: Sutton
Closing Date: 30th September 2026
This role is eligible for ICR Sponsorship. If this is your first visa in the UK, support will be provided for costs associated with Visa application. If you are considering relocating to the UK, further information can be found here.
We seek a Higher Scientific Officer within the Centre for Target Validation to carry out lab-based cell biology research focused on potential therapeutic targets in cancer. Projects will involve the use of genetic techniques (RNAi/CRISPR), targeted protein degradation, tool compounds and molecular biology to generate key decision-making data in target validation and enable target prioritisation for drug discovery. The postholder will also contribute to assay development and biomarker discovery for targets that move to a drug discovery phase within the ICR’s Centre for Cancer Drug Discovery.
About You
The successful candidate must have:
- At least a Masters level qualification in Cell Biology or an aligned subject.
- Knowledge of cancer biology
- Knowledge of experimental approaches to therapeutic target validation in cancer
Reasons to use Rodeo
Start with a chat, not a search bar
Grad scheme, placement, apprenticeship? Not sure what you want yet — that's fine. Your agent talks it through with you and turns "I have no idea" into a shortlist.
It searches the market for you
Every day your agent scans the market matching roles against what actually matters to you, not just keywords on a CV.
Only hits
No noise. No "maybe this fits." Just roles with a clear explanation of why they're right — and where to focus when applying.
Please access the job pack attached for the detailed job description and person specification.
Department/Directorate Information
The ICR has established a Centre for Target Validation that will accelerate the translation of ICR and collaborator research into drug discovery programmes. The Centre will deliver bespoke, hypothesis-driven data packages to support decision-making for launch of drug discovery projects. The Centre’s dedicated resources, including biology, functional genomics, assay sciences, chemistry, and bioinformatics teams, will support joint project teams that combine the deep biological and therapeutic knowledge of ICR investigators with the validation and technical expertise of drug discovery scientists. Scientists in the Centre for Target Validation will work closely with colleagues in the ICR’s Centre for Protein Degradation to exploit emerging technology and protein degradation tools for robust target validation experiments. The Centre for Target Validation will serve as a hub, connecting researchers to expertise and resources that will validate and streamline robust, targets into drug discovery programmes in the ICR’s Centre for Cancer Drug Discovery or into collaborative programmes with external commercial therapy discovery partners.
What We Offer
- A dynamic and supportive research environment
- Access to state-of-the-art facilities and professional development opportunities
- Collaboration with leading researchers in the field
- Competitive salary and pension
Get help with your application
Your very own career expert that helps elevate your application to the next level.
We encourage all applicants to access the job pack attached for more detailed information regarding this role. For an informal discussion regarding the role, please contact Joanna Loizou via Email on [email protected].
Why work for us?
As a member of staff, you'll have exclusive access to a range of staff benefits.
The ICR is committed to supporting overseas applicants applying for roles, please click here to find out further information.
The Institute of Cancer Research, London, is one of the world's most influential cancer research institutes, with an outstanding record of achievement dating back more than 100 years. Further information about working at the ICR can be found here.
We look forward to receiving applications from all candidates, wherever in the world they are currently based. We will select those who display the potential to become, or to support, the world leading cancer researchers of the future based on their application and performance at interview. However, we particularly welcome British applicants from black and ethnic minority backgrounds, as they are under-represented within the ICR and nationwide in STEM roles.
“It took my CV and asked me questions relevant to understanding what kind of jobs to suggest for me. Suggestions were almost perfect. Jobs were exactly what I’ve been looking for.”
Jessica, London
Skills
Location