Research Associate I–II, Bioprocess Development
Location: San Diego, CA
Work Arrangement: Fully onsite, five days per week
Employment Type: Contract, 6-12 months
Compensation: To be determined
BioPhase is seeking a hands-on Research Associate I-II, Bioprocess Development for an innovative biotechnology and industrial chemistry company in San Diego. This is an excellent opportunity for an associate-level scientist who enjoys owning experiments, generating high-quality data, solving problems at the bench, and helping translate early-stage methods into scalable, repeatable bioprocess workflows.
In this role, you will design, execute, analyze, and document cultivation and fermentation experiments across 96-well plate and shake-flask platforms, with occasional exposure to benchtop bioreactors. You will support media development, growth and productivity studies, condition screening, method optimization, and laboratory operations in a fast-moving, highly collaborative startup environment.
What You’ll Do
- Design, execute, document, analyze, and present cultivation and fermentation experiments across multiple platforms, including 96-well plates and shake flasks.
- Support occasional cultivation experiments using benchtop bioreactors.
- Conduct optimization studies, including media development, growth studies, productivity studies, and experimental condition screens.
- Independently troubleshoot experiments and help identify practical solutions when results do not meet expectations.
- Prepare, sterilize, optimize, and maintain growth media, buffers, reagents, and laboratory consumables.
- Perform routine analytics and sample handling to support cultivation experiments, including optical density measurements, growth monitoring, sampling, sample preparation, and sample submission.
- Develop, refine, and follow standard operating procedures for new and existing laboratory workflows.
- Maintain thorough, accurate, and reproducible experimental documentation.
- Clearly communicate experimental findings, observations, and data-driven insights to scientists, engineers, and cross-functional collaborators.
- Help maintain laboratory organization, equipment readiness, inventory levels, and a safe, compliant work environment.
- Uphold laboratory safety, chemical hygiene, and responsible research practices.
Required Qualifications
- Bachelor’s degree in Biochemistry, Bioengineering, Microbiology, Chemical Engineering, or a related scientific discipline.
- At least 2 years of relevant laboratory, academic, industrial, or startup experience.
- Strong hands-on experience with cell culture, fermentation, microbial systems, or related bioprocessing workflows.
- Experience independently planning, executing, and troubleshooting optimization experiments, such as media development, growth studies, or cultivation-condition screening.
- Working knowledge of aseptic technique, media and buffer preparation, and routine laboratory analytics.
- Strong attention to detail, organization, documentation, and reproducible laboratory execution.
- Ability to communicate experimental results and technical insights clearly to both technical and non-technical stakeholders.
- Ability to work fully onsite in San Diego, Monday through Friday, in a fast-paced and collaborative startup setting.
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience with high-throughput cultivation platforms, microtiter plate cultivation, or 96-well plate-based experimental workflows.
- Experience with benchtop bioreactors, fermentation systems, or a demonstrated interest in developing bioreactor expertise.
- Experience using data-analysis tools such as Python, R, JMP, Excel, or similar platforms.
- Familiarity with electronic laboratory notebooks, LIMS, laboratory inventory systems, or structured data-management tools.
- Experience working in a biotechnology, synthetic biology, industrial microbiology, fermentation, bioprocess development, or startup laboratory environment.