Scientist – Oligonucleotide Chemistry & Innovation

At Roche you can show up as yourself, embraced for the unique qualities you bring. Our culture encourages personal expression, open dialogue, and genuine connections, where you are valued, accepted and respected for who you are, allowing you to thrive both personally and professionally. This is how we aim to prevent, stop and cure diseases and ensure everyone has access to healthcare today and for generations to come. Join Roche, where every voice matters.

The Position

In Roche’s Pharmaceutical Research and Early Development organization (pRED), we make transformative medicines for patients in order to tackle some of the world’s toughest unmet healthcare needs. At pRED, we are united by our mission to transform science into medicines. Together, we create a culture defined by curiosity, responsibility, and humility, where our talented people are empowered and inspired to bring forward extraordinary life-changing innovation at speed.

Therapeutic Modality (TMo) organization, accountable for translating disease biology into high-quality drug candidates across small molecules, large molecules, oligonucleotides, and genomic medicines. By integrating deep modality expertise with cross-disciplinary collaboration, TMo drives innovation within and across platforms to enable differentiated, sustainable therapeutic impact.

As an experienced Scientist in Oligonucleotide Chemistry, you will serve as a key architect behind our therapeutic pipeline, translating advanced chemical concepts into optimized lead candidates. In this strategic role, you will champion the rational design and chemical modification framework for next-generation small interfering RNAs (siRNAs) and antisense oligonucleotides (ASOs). Collaborating seamlessly with our computational platforms and discovery teams, you will guide the creation of proprietary libraries and establish structure-activity relationships to accelerate candidate selection. By synthesizing cutting-edge literature, emerging technologies, and external innovations, you will continuously elevate our core chemical design strategies and position our platform at the forefront of genetic medicine.

The Opportunity

• Design and champion the rational chemical modification framework for next-generation oligonucleotides—including siRNAs and ASOs—to advance critical drug discovery projects.
• Collaborate seamlessly with computational experts and synthesis teams to create high-value, novel oligonucleotide libraries, bridging theoretical chemistry with data-driven design.
• Analyze experimental data using advanced computational methods, applying continuous learning cycles to systematically refine and elevate chemical designs.
• Translate innovative chemical concepts into synthetically accessible structures with precision and attention to detail.
• Stay at the forefront of emerging technologies and external breakthroughs to identify novel ways to improve safety profiles, durability, and therapeutic performance.
• Partner across multidisciplinary teams—including biology, pharmacology, and toxicology—to evaluate biological impacts and guide strategic decisions in a highly collaborative environment.

Who You Are

• You hold a Ph.D. in Oligonucleotide Chemistry, Organic Chemistry, or a related discipline, complemented by 3 to 5 years of industry experience in the biotech or pharmaceutical sectors. Experience across different oligonucleotide modalities is highly desirable.
• You bring deep expertise in translating chemical modifications of oligonucleotides into innovative drug candidate designs.
• You possess a comprehensive understanding of modern oligonucleotide modification patterns (such as 2'-O-methyl, 2'-fluoro, LNA, cEt) and how they influence therapeutic properties.
• You are familiar with delivery technologies (like GalNAc, lipid, or peptide conjugates), and any insights you have into linker design are highly valued.
• You combine scientific creativity and attention to detail with independent problem-solving skills, and you thrive in a collaborative environment where you can inspire and guide cross-functional teams.

At Roche, we aim high to deliver life-changing healthcare solutions. If you’re ready to make a meaningful impact on patients and healthcare systems worldwide, this is the place for you.

Who we are

A healthier future drives us to innovate. Together, more than 100’000 employees across the globe are dedicated to advance science, ensuring everyone has access to healthcare today and for generations to come. Our efforts result in more than 26 million people treated with our medicines and over 30 billion tests conducted using our Diagnostics products. We empower each other to explore new possibilities, foster creativity, and keep our ambitions high, so we can deliver life-changing healthcare solutions that make a global impact.

Let’s build a healthier future, together.

Roche is an Equal Opportunity Employer.