Senior Level Principal Research Scientist Jobs
Senior level principal research scientist jobs place experienced researchers at the helm of complex, high-stakes scientific programs, with full ownership of research direction, methodology, and outcomes across interdisciplinary teams. Openings are concentrated in Technology & Software, Science & Research, and Biotechnology & Pharmaceuticals, with a mix of on-site, hybrid, and remote positions available, and employers like AbbVie, Duolingo, and Databricks hiring at this level now.
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Showing 5 of 14+ Senior Level Principal Research Scientist jobs
About AbbVie
AbbVie's mission is to discover and deliver innovative medicines and solutions that solve serious health issues today and address the medical challenges of tomorrow. We strive to have a remarkable impact on people's lives across several key therapeutic areas including immunology, oncology and neuroscience - and products and services in our Allergan Aesthetics portfolio. For more information about AbbVie, please visit us at www.abbvie.com. Follow @abbvie on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, X and YouTube.
Job Description
Overview
The Development Sciences Biologics Drug Product Development organization within AbbVie develops and characterizes drug product formulations and manufacturing processes to provide clinical dosage forms to enable the development of AbbVie’s pipeline. AbbVie is seeking a highly motivated person to join the Biologics CMC Developability Team. Our team utilizes state-of-the-art biophysical and analytical instrumentation to assess candidates coming out of the Discovery pipeline. We collaboratively influence protein design paradigms to yield biologic candidates that will be successful drug products. Key to our success is developing models of protein structure and function to augment decision making in protein design and development. We utilize high throughput instrumentation and digital data systems to capture ML-ready data on industry leading datasets of therapeutic proteins. To drive maximum benefit from this data, we are seeking an experienced scientist to lead modeling efforts within our team. The successful candidate will bring deep experience of modeling protein stability or related properties to solve foundational questions such as viscosity, chemical degradation, and aggregation. Applicable modeling techniques could range from first principles to statistical based approaches. This role includes the opportunity to design molecules and custom studies for data generation, so knowledge of biochemistry experimentation is useful. The candidate will be a member of a global team and will work closely with scientists from multiple functional areas, including Discovery, Development Science Digital Transformation, and Information Research.
Key Responsibilities:
- Serve as a technical expert for modeling within Biologics CMC Developability Team
- Represent BCD in modeling communities within AbbVie; collaborates with other modelers or teams to ensure business needs are met by the correct modeling framework
- May perform in vitro laboratory experiments; works closely with teams for design of wet lab studies to build both models and fundamental knowledge of protein solution behavior
- Identifies emerging scientific and technological trends from multiple internal and external sources, assesses relevance and integrates applicable trends into BCD plans and strategies as appropriate. Present data at internal and external professional conferences and prepare manuscripts for publication in peer reviewed journals or patent applications
- May serve as BCD Lead, coordinate developability assessment activities for 1-2 Discovery Projects at a time
- Experience with cross-functional decision making across reporting lines
Qualifications
- BS, MS, or PhD in Pharmaceutics, Pharmaceutical Sciences, Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, or related disciplines with 14+ (Bachelors), 12+ (Masters), or 6+ (PhD) years of relevant industry experience.
- Proven ability to solve critical scientific problems.
- Direct experience with applying modeling techniques (mechanistic or statistical) to protein long-term stability or formulation screening such as kinetic degradation modeling
- Well versed in predictive machine learning and statistical modeling techniques
- Familiar with complex ML architectures including deep learning and hierarchical or multi-task frameworks
- Skilled with feature attribution, sensitivity analysis, and model interpretability
Key Competencies:
- Build strong relationships with peers and cross functionally with partners outside of the team to enable higher performance.
- Excellent oral communication skills in a scientific setting as well as sound technical writing and documentation competencies are required.
- The candidate must be able to work independently, respond to changing priorities and short lead times for multiple tasks; able to identify problems and work toward solutions.
- Raises the bar and is never satisfied with the status quo.
- Creates a learning environment, open to suggestions and experimentation for improvement.
- Embraces the ideas of others, nurtures innovation and manages innovation to reality.
Additional Information
Applicable only to applicants applying to a position in any location with pay disclosure requirements under state or local law:
The compensation range described below is the range of possible base pay compensation that the Company believes in good faith it will pay for this role at the time of this posting based on the job grade for this position. Individual compensation paid within this range will depend on many factors including geographic location, and we may ultimately pay more or less than the posted range. This range may be modified in the future.
We offer a comprehensive package of benefits including paid time off (vacation, holidays, sick), medical/dental/vision insurance and 401(k) to eligible employees.
This job is eligible to participate in our long-term incentive programs.
Note: No amount of pay is considered to be wages or compensation until such amount is earned, vested, and determinable. The amount and availability of any bonus, commission, incentive, benefits, or any other form of compensation and benefits that are allocable to a particular employee remains in the Company's sole and absolute discretion unless and until paid and may be modified at the Company’s sole and absolute discretion, consistent with applicable law.
AbbVie is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to operating with integrity, driving innovation, transforming lives and serving our community. Equal Opportunity Employer/Veterans/Disabled.
US & Puerto Rico only - to learn more, visit https://www.abbvie.com/join-us/equal-employment-opportunity-employer.html
US & Puerto Rico applicants seeking a reasonable accommodation, click here to learn more:
https://www.abbvie.com/join-us/reasonable-accommodations.html
About AbbVie
AbbVie's mission is to discover and deliver innovative medicines and solutions that solve serious health issues today and address the medical challenges of tomorrow. We strive to have a remarkable impact on people's lives across several key therapeutic areas including immunology, oncology and neuroscience - and products and services in our Allergan Aesthetics portfolio. For more information about AbbVie, please visit us at www.abbvie.com. Follow @abbvie on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, X and YouTube.
Job Description
Overview
The Development Sciences Biologics Drug Product Development organization within AbbVie develops and characterizes drug product formulations and manufacturing processes to provide clinical dosage forms to enable the development of AbbVie’s pipeline. AbbVie is seeking a highly motivated person to join the Biologics CMC Developability Team. Our team utilizes state-of-the-art biophysical and analytical instrumentation to assess candidates coming out of the Discovery pipeline. We collaboratively influence protein design paradigms to yield biologic candidates that will be successful drug products. Key to our success is developing models of protein structure and function to augment decision making in protein design and development. We utilize high throughput instrumentation and digital data systems to capture ML-ready data on industry leading datasets of therapeutic proteins. To drive maximum benefit from this data, we are seeking an experienced scientist to lead modeling efforts within our team. The successful candidate will bring deep experience of modeling protein stability or related properties to solve foundational questions such as viscosity, chemical degradation, and aggregation. Applicable modeling techniques could range from first principles to statistical based approaches. This role includes the opportunity to design molecules and custom studies for data generation, so knowledge of biochemistry experimentation is useful. The candidate will be a member of a global team and will work closely with scientists from multiple functional areas, including Discovery, Development Science Digital Transformation, and Information Research.
Key Responsibilities:
- Serve as a technical expert for modeling within Biologics CMC Developability Team
- Represent BCD in modeling communities within AbbVie; collaborates with other modelers or teams to ensure business needs are met by the correct modeling framework
- May perform in vitro laboratory experiments; works closely with teams for design of wet lab studies to build both models and fundamental knowledge of protein solution behavior
- Identifies emerging scientific and technological trends from multiple internal and external sources, assesses relevance and integrates applicable trends into BCD plans and strategies as appropriate. Present data at internal and external professional conferences and prepare manuscripts for publication in peer reviewed journals or patent applications
- May serve as BCD Lead, coordinate developability assessment activities for 1-2 Discovery Projects at a time
- Experience with cross-functional decision making across reporting lines
Qualifications
- BS, MS, or PhD in Pharmaceutics, Pharmaceutical Sciences, Chemistry, Chemical Engineering, or related disciplines with 14+ (Bachelors), 12+ (Masters), or 6+ (PhD) years of relevant industry experience.
- Proven ability to solve critical scientific problems.
- Direct experience with applying modeling techniques (mechanistic or statistical) to protein long-term stability or formulation screening such as kinetic degradation modeling
- Well versed in predictive machine learning and statistical modeling techniques
- Familiar with complex ML architectures including deep learning and hierarchical or multi-task frameworks
- Skilled with feature attribution, sensitivity analysis, and model interpretability
Key Competencies:
- Build strong relationships with peers and cross functionally with partners outside of the team to enable higher performance.
- Excellent oral communication skills in a scientific setting as well as sound technical writing and documentation competencies are required.
- The candidate must be able to work independently, respond to changing priorities and short lead times for multiple tasks; able to identify problems and work toward solutions.
- Raises the bar and is never satisfied with the status quo.
- Creates a learning environment, open to suggestions and experimentation for improvement.
- Embraces the ideas of others, nurtures innovation and manages innovation to reality.
Additional Information
Applicable only to applicants applying to a position in any location with pay disclosure requirements under state or local law:
The compensation range described below is the range of possible base pay compensation that the Company believes in good faith it will pay for this role at the time of this posting based on the job grade for this position. Individual compensation paid within this range will depend on many factors including geographic location, and we may ultimately pay more or less than the posted range. This range may be modified in the future.
We offer a comprehensive package of benefits including paid time off (vacation, holidays, sick), medical/dental/vision insurance and 401(k) to eligible employees.
This job is eligible to participate in our long-term incentive programs.
Note: No amount of pay is considered to be wages or compensation until such amount is earned, vested, and determinable. The amount and availability of any bonus, commission, incentive, benefits, or any other form of compensation and benefits that are allocable to a particular employee remains in the Company's sole and absolute discretion unless and until paid and may be modified at the Company’s sole and absolute discretion, consistent with applicable law.
AbbVie is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to operating with integrity, driving innovation, transforming lives and serving our community. Equal Opportunity Employer/Veterans/Disabled.
US & Puerto Rico only - to learn more, visit https://www.abbvie.com/join-us/equal-employment-opportunity-employer.html
US & Puerto Rico applicants seeking a reasonable accommodation, click here to learn more:
https://www.abbvie.com/join-us/reasonable-accommodations.html
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Senior Level Principal Research Scientist Jobs: Frequently Asked Questions
How do I get a senior level principal research scientist job?
Candidates who land these roles typically bring deep domain expertise, a record of leading end-to-end research programs, and the ability to influence scientific strategy beyond their immediate team. Employers at this level want to see publications, patents, or applied outcomes that demonstrate independent scientific leadership, along with experience mentoring junior researchers and translating complex findings into actionable decisions for cross-functional stakeholders.
Which companies hire senior level principal research scientists?
Companies hiring senior level principal research scientists right now include AbbVie, Duolingo, and Databricks, based on current listings on Migrate Mate as of November 2026. At this level, hiring tends to concentrate among large technology firms, pharmaceutical companies, national laboratories, and advanced manufacturing organizations with dedicated R&D divisions.
Are there remote senior level principal research scientist jobs?
Yes, though availability varies by field and employer. About 9% of senior level principal research scientist openings are remote or hybrid as of November 2026, with fully remote roles more common in computational, data-driven, and software-focused research disciplines than in lab-based or hardware-dependent specializations.
What makes a principal research scientist role senior level?
Senior level principal research scientist roles are defined by scope and autonomy rather than task execution. At this stage, researchers own the scientific roadmap for a domain or product area, set methodological standards across teams, mentor staff and principal-level scientists, and regularly present findings to executive or external audiences. The expectation shifts from contributing to individual projects to shaping the direction of an entire research function.
Which industries hire the most senior level principal research scientists?
Senior Level principal research scientist roles concentrate in Technology & Software, Science & Research, and Biotechnology & Pharmaceuticals, based on current listings on Migrate Mate as of November 2026. These sectors drive hiring at this level because their competitive advantage depends directly on sustained, expert-led scientific research rather than incremental process improvement.