(Senior) Research Associate, Stem Cell Biology

Conception

$90K — $120K *
Pharmaceuticals & Biotech
Less than 5 years of experience
Job Overview by Ladders

Qualifications

  • PhD in stem cell biology, developmental biology, reproductive biology, cell biology, embryology, bioengineering, or related field.
  • 4+ years of hands-on experience with human pluripotent stem cell culture or related workflows.
  • Direct experience with ESC/iPSC derivation and line establishment is valuable.
  • Strong aseptic technique and experience maintaining sensitive cell lines.
  • Excellent attention to detail and reliability in executing protocols meticulously.
  • Experience with stem cell QC, 3D culture, microdissection, or long-duration cultures is desirable.
  • Strong work ethic and team-first mindset.
  • Ability to thrive in a fast-paced startup environment.

Responsibilities

  • Build, optimize, and execute workflows for reproductive cell development.
  • Derive, establish, expand, bank, and characterize iPSC & ESC lines.
  • Maintain high-quality ESC/iPSC cultures and document their conditions.
  • Troubleshoot protocols and improve reproducibility for consistent workflows.
  • Establish epigenetic quality readouts as part of the QC process.
  • Collaborate with various teams across stem cell and reproductive biology.
  • Execute demanding workflows with precision and consistency.

Benefits

  • Impact: Contribute to a significant program in reproductive biology.
  • Ownership: Manage high-value workflows, enhancing reproducibility and scalability.
  • Growth: Acquire deep expertise in advanced reproductive and stem cell methodologies.
  • Community: Collaborate with passionate scientists on groundbreaking research.
  • Mission: Participate in building the biological foundation for transformative reproductive medicine.
Full Job Description
The position

We are seeking an extremely hard-working, highly skilled, hands-on scientist or scientific specialist to support our pluripotent stem cell program. This is a technical specialist role for someone who wants to be in the lab doing difficult, delicate, high-impact work.

Ideally, you have direct experience deriving, establishing, expanding, banking, and characterizing pluripotent stem cell lines. We are looking for a rigorous bench scientist who is excited to execute, troubleshoot, repeat, improve, and master technically demanding workflows. The right person will be flexible in focus, willing to learn new techniques, and motivated to contribute wherever the lab needs them most. Experience with QC readout establishment, stem cell differentiation, 3D culture, or related reproductive biology techniques is highly valuable.

Title is negotiable based on experience and may range from Scientific Specialist to Senior Scientist.

What you'll do
  • Build, optimize, and repeatedly execute workflows needed for stem-cell-derived reproductive cell development
  • Derive, establish, expand, bank, and characterize iPSC & ESC lines
  • Maintain high-quality ESC/iPSC cultures, document passage history and culture conditions, and support characterization and QC assays
  • Troubleshoot protocols, improve reproducibility, and help maintain consistency across difficult and delicate workflows
  • Establish epigenetic quality readouts
  • Collaborate closely with stem cell, reproductive biology, embryology, genomics, and preclinical teams
  • Execute technically demanding workflows with precision, timing, repetition, and consistency


What we're looking for
  • PhD in stem cell biology, developmental biology, reproductive biology, cell biology, embryology, bioengineering, or a related field
  • Ideally 4+ years of hands-on experience with human pluripotent stem cell culture, reproductive biology, or related technical workflows
  • Direct experience with ESC/iPSC derivation, or ESC/iPSC line establishment is especially valuable
  • Strong aseptic technique and experience maintaining sensitive, high-value cell lines
  • Excellent attention to detail, reliability, and comfort with difficult, repetitive protocols that require precision and consistency
  • Hands-on experience with ESC/iPSC expansion and banking, stem cell QC, 3D culture, organoid culture, co-culture systems, microdissection, micromanipulation, or long-duration tissue and cell culture workflows is highly desirable
  • Strong work ethic and team-first mindset. Willing to do hands-on work, including routine and repetitive tasks, and step in wherever needed
  • Able to thrive in a high-intensity, fast-paced, flexible startup environment


Why join us
  • Impact: Help build the technical foundation for one of the most ambitious programs in reproductive biology
  • Ownership: Take responsibility for difficult, high-value workflows and help make them reproducible and scalable
  • Growth: Develop deep expertise in technically demanding reproductive and stem cell biology methods
  • Community: Work alongside passionate scientists tackling one of the most exciting frontiers in biology with a deeply aligned team
  • Mission: Build the biological foundation for a new era of reproductive medicine, expanding what is possible for millions of people and families with limited options today


Come and work with us

We are well funded and well connected in Silicon Valley. We offer competitive pay, company equity, excellent healthcare benefits, and a collaborative research environment focused on meaningful results.

If you are passionate, hardworking, and aligned with our mission, we want to hear from you.

To learn more about the original mouse proof of concept to live birth that inspired us, see https://www.nature.com/articles/nature20104

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