Job Description
Neuroscience co-op program 2025 - West Point
The Future Talent Program features co-ops that last 6 months and will include one or more projects. These opportunities in our Research Labs can provide you with great development and a chance to see if we are the right company for your long-term goals.
Our company’s Neuroscience team is seeking a motivated and technically skilled co-op student majoring in the biological sciences, pharmacology or bioengineering. The student should have strong interest in neuroscience and learning about Central Nervous System (CNS) drug discovery. Successful candidates will be able to work independently and will be expected to proactively collaborate with colleagues. Primary responsibilities include contributing to the execution of in vitro and/or in vivo experiment that may encompass establishing cell-based model systems, development of immunoassays and performing biochemical and immunohistochemical analysis of tissues to support the identification and validation of novel targets to treat CNS diseases. The candidate will be an active participant in the positive and critical scientific dialogue that supports our mission of drug discovery.
The responsibilities of the Early Discovery Neuroscience team member include but are not limited to the following:
Design, execute, interpret and report in vitro and/or in vivo experiments.
Assist in developing, executing, and troubleshooting new in vitro or in vivo assays, protocols and/or imaging methods.
Communication of data clearly and concisely to teams and stakeholders.
Monitor, review and critically interpret published work to guide their research.
Collaborate with members from other functional areas, including medicinal chemistry, in vivo and in vitro pharmacology and genetics.
Education Minimum Requirement:
Required Experience and Skills:
Candidates must have completed at least (2) years toward degree program by June of 2024
Candidates must be available to work full-time for 6 months beginning in early to mid- 2025
Candidates must have theoretical knowledge of at least 2 of the following areas: molecular biology techniques, biochemistry, cell culture, neuroscience, functional neuroanatomy, pharmacology, toxicology, fluorescence microscopy, electrophysiology.
Candidates must have hands-on experience with basic biology/chemistry lab procedures: pipetting, solution preparation, plate assays, and at least 1 of the following: basic mammalian cell culture, transfections, primary neurons, antibody-based assays, colorimetric assays, gel electrophoresis for DNA and proteins, animal handling, behavioural assays in rodents.
Candidates must have strong desire to develop knowledge of neuroscience drug discovery and work in a multidisciplinary team environment.
Candidates must have demonstrated ability to perform accurate data collection and analysis, graphing and presentation of results. Knowledge of statistical analysis is a plus.
Preferred Experience and Skills:
- Candidates should have previous neuroscience, biochemistry, molecular biology class work.
- Candidates should have experience with molecular biology assays AND/OR in vitro cell culture techniques AND/OR rodent behavior, animal handling, dosing procedures, tissue processing.
- Candidates should demonstrate interest in conducting experiments to determine efficacy of test compounds, establish dose-response and pharmacokinetic/pharmacodynamic relationships, investigate biomarker responses and target engagement or modulation in vitro or in vivo.
- Candidates should have excellent oral and written communication skills, including preparation of lab reports and presentations.
- Candidates should have strong attention to detail.
FTP2025
MRL2025
Employees working in roles that the Company determines require routine collaboration with external stakeholders, such as customer-facing commercial, or research-based roles, will be expected to comply not only with Company policy but also with policies established by such external stakeholders (for example, a requirement to be vaccinated against COVID-19 in order to access a facility or meet with stakeholders). Please understand that, as permitted by applicable law, if you have not been vaccinated against COVID-19 and an essential function of your job is to call on external stakeholders who require vaccination to enter their premises or engage in face-to-face meetings, then your employment may pose an undue burden to business operations, in which case you may not be offered employment, or your employment could be terminated. Please also note that, where permitted by applicable law, the Company reserves the right to require COVID-19 vaccinations for positions, such as in Global Employee Health, where the Company determines in its discretion that the nature of the role presents an increased risk of disease transmission.
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We are an Equal Opportunity Employer, committed to fostering an inclusive and diverse workplace. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, age, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, or disability status, or other applicable legally protected characteristics. For more information about personal rights under the U.S. Equal Opportunity Employment laws, visit:
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U.S. Hybrid Work Model
Effective September 5, 2023, employees in office-based positions in the U.S. will be working a Hybrid work consisting of three total days on-site per week, generally Tuesday, Wednesday and either Monday or Thursday, although the specific days may vary by site or organization, with Friday designated as a remote-working day, unless business critical tasks require an on-site presence. This Hybrid work model does not apply to, and daily in-person attendance is required for, field-based positions; facility-based, manufacturing-based, or research-based positions where the work to be performed is located at a Company site; positions covered by a collective-bargaining agreement (unless the agreement provides for hybrid work); or any other position for which the Company has determined the job requirements cannot be reasonably met working remotely. Please note, this Hybrid work model guidance also does not apply to roles that have been designated as “remote”.
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Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA, also known as Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC, Rahway, NJ, USA, does not accept unsolicited assistance from search firms for employment opportunities. All CVs / resumes submitted by search firms to any employee at our company without a valid written search agreement in place for this position will be deemed the sole property of our company. No fee will be paid in the event a candidate is hired by our company as a result of an agency referral where no pre-existing agreement is in place. Where agency agreements are in place, introductions are position specific. Please, no phone calls or emails.
Employee Status:
Intern/Co-op (Fixed Term)
Relocation:
No relocation
VISA Sponsorship:
No
Travel Requirements:
No Travel Required
Flexible Work Arrangements:
Not Applicable
Shift:
Not Indicated
Valid Driving License:
No
Hazardous Material(s):
N/A
Job Posting End Date:
10/28/2024
*A job posting is effective until 11:59:59PM on the day BEFORE the listed job posting end date. Please ensure you apply to a job posting no later than the day BEFORE the job posting end date.
