Scientist Bioscience - Wet Chemistry

Scientist, Bioscience - Wet Chemistry

Location: Gaithersburg, MD

Onsite Flexibility: Onsite

Contract Details

• Position Type: Contract
• Contract Duration: 3 - 4 months
• Pay Rate: $40.00–$50.00 / Hour (USD)
• Shift / Schedule: Standard hours are approximately 9:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m., with flexibility preferred for candidates who can start around 7:00 a.m. and leave earlier.
• Work Authorization: Applicants must be authorized to work for ANY employer in the U.S. We are unable to sponsor or take over sponsorship of an employment Visa at this time.

Role overview

• Bioscience-focused role, with preference for candidates who have bacterial fermentation.
• Open to candidates with backgrounds in:
  • Biotechnology
  • Microbiology
  • Biochemistry
  • Chemistry combined with biology experience
• The role is primarily wet-lab based and works closely with the manager and the broader project team.
• The position involves executing experiments using a fully automated, customized AZ system for library screening.
• Prior automation or robotics experience is helpful but not required; the team will provide training.
• The candidate will receive hands-on training with an advanced automated platform that can complete processes in days that might otherwise take months.
• The team is open to candidates with zero years of experience, provided they demonstrate strong learning ability, organization, and initiative.
• A master’s degree or PhD is preferred, but a strong undergraduate candidate may also be considered.

• Spend most of the day supporting experiments in the lab.
• Set up and operate automated workflows and laboratory equipment.
• Plan experiments and determine the required reagents and materials.
• Prepare plates and other materials for robotic processing.
• Support high-throughput culture workflows.
• Manage or monitor automated colony-picking and sample-processing steps.
• Allow the automated system to grow samples, collect aliquots, and transfer them into assays.
• Run high-throughput assays, including ELISA/immunoassays.
• Monitor individual workflow steps and understand the importance and criticality of each operation.
• Analyze and evaluate the data generated by the automated assays.
• Follow established methods and protocols accurately.
• Work closely with the manager and project team to understand both the biology and chemistry behind the workflow.
• Maintain a strong sense of responsibility, organization, and ownership over the experiments.
• Work primarily onsite in the lab, while spending time at a desk for data analysis and experiment planning.
• Standard hours are approximately 9:00 a.m.–5:00 p.m., with flexibility preferred for candidates who can start around 7:00 a.m. and leave earlier.

Job Summary

The Bacterial Vaccines Biochemistry Team is seeking a motivated Upstream Process Development Contractor to support the optimization of microbial glycoprotein production. The successful candidate will contribute to a high-throughput screening program designed to identify microbial colonies with enhanced glycoprotein expression from a library of mutants. The role will involve the use of automated liquid-handling platforms to support experimental workflows, including colony screening, sample preparation, assay set-up, and data generation. The contractor will work closely with scientists across upstream process development, molecular biology, analytical biochemistry, and automation. This is a four-month opportunity suited to a candidate with practical experience in molecular biology techniques and immunoassays, together with an interest in developing expertise in laboratory automation, whole-genome sequencing, enzymatic glycosylation, library optimization, and high-throughput bioprocessing.

This bioscience-focused role has a preference for candidates who have bacterial fermentation experience. The role is open to candidates with backgrounds in biotechnology, microbiology, biochemistry, or chemistry combined with biology experience. The role is primarily wet-lab based and works closely with the manager and the broader project team. The position involves executing experiments using a fully automated, customized system for library screening. Prior automation or robotics experience is helpful but not required; the team will provide training. The candidate will receive hands-on training with an advanced automated platform that can complete processes in days that might otherwise take months. The team is open to candidates with zero years of experience, provided they demonstrate strong learning ability, organization, and initiative.

Key Responsibilities

The contractor will support the design, execution, and analysis of experiments to identify high-producing microbial colonies and optimize glycoprotein production conditions. Responsibilities will include:

• Supporting the development and execution of high-throughput microbial colony screening workflows using automated liquid-handling systems.
• Preparing microbial cultures, samples, reagents, and assay plates in accordance with approved experimental protocols.
• Operating and learning to program automated laboratory equipment for liquid transfer, dilution, plate preparation, and sample processing.
• Screening mutant libraries and assessing glycoprotein production using appropriate analytical methods, including immunoassays such as ELISA.
• Performing routine molecular biology techniques, which may include DNA extraction, PCR, plasmid preparation, transformation, and agarose gel electrophoresis.
• Supporting the evaluation and optimization of microbial libraries to identify improved glycoprotein-producing candidates.
• Contributing to sample preparation and data generation for whole-genome sequencing and related genomic analysis activities.
• Supporting experiments involving enzymatic glycosylation and the characterization of glycoprotein production.
• Recording experimental procedures, observations, and results accurately in electronic laboratory systems and approved documentation.
• Analysing experimental data, identifying trends, and communicating findings to project team members.
• Following all relevant laboratory, biosafety, quality, data integrity, and company procedures.
• Spending most of the day supporting experiments in the lab.
• Setting up and operating automated workflows and laboratory equipment.
• Planning experiments and determining the required reagents and materials.
• Preparing plates and other materials for robotic processing.
• Supporting high-throughput culture workflows.
• Managing or monitoring automated colony-picking and sample-processing steps.
• Allowing the automated system to grow samples, collect aliquots, and transfer them into assays.
• Running high-throughput assays, including ELISA/immunoassays.
• Monitoring individual workflow steps and understanding the importance and criticality of each operation.
• Analyzing and evaluating the data generated by the automated assays.
• Following established methods and protocols accurately.
• Working closely with the manager and project team to understand both the biology and chemistry behind the workflow.
• Maintaining a strong sense of responsibility, organization, and ownership over the experiments.
• Working primarily onsite in the lab, while spending time at a desk for data analysis and experiment planning.

Required Skills

• Hands-on knowledge of molecular biology techniques, microbial culture, and immunoassay methods, preferably including ELISA.
• Careful and methodical approach to laboratory work, with the ability to follow protocols consistently while also contributing ideas to improve experimental workflows.
• Comfortable working with repetitive, high-throughput experiments, analysing quantitative data, and maintaining accurate records.
• Strong attention to detail, effective organisation, and the ability to manage multiple experiments within agreed timelines.
• Ability to work independently on defined tasks while collaborating effectively with scientists and technical colleagues.
• Clear communication, reliable documentation, sound experimental judgement, and a commitment to laboratory safety and data integrity.
• Enthusiasm for learning new technologies, particularly laboratory automation, genomics, glycoprotein production, and high-throughput process development.
• Strong learning ability, organization, and initiative.

Preferred Skills

• Experience with bacterial expression systems, protein or glycoprotein production, colony screening, library screening, or assay development.
• High-throughput screening or automated liquid-handling platforms.
• Bacterial strain engineering, transformation, or mutant library generation.
• Recombinant protein or glycoprotein expression and characterization.
• ELISA development, optimization, or other plate-based immunoassays.
• Whole-genome sequencing sample preparation or interpretation of sequencing results.
• Enzymatic glycosylation or glycoengineering.
• Laboratory automation, liquid-handler programming, or integration of automated workflows.
• Data analysis using tools such as Excel, GraphPad Prism, or equivalent software.
• Work in an industrial, regulated, biotechnology, pharmaceutical, or vaccine-development environment.
• Bacterial fermentation experience.
• Prior automation or robotics experience (training will be provided if not present).

Education Requirements

• Master's degree or PhD in molecular biology, biochemistry, microbiology, biotechnology, bioengineering, or a related scientific discipline preferred.
• Candidates with a Bachelor's degree and relevant laboratory experience may also be considered, depending on their practical expertise.

About the Client

This global biopharmaceutical company is driven by a mission to push the boundaries of science and deliver life-changing medicines that transform the lives of patients worldwide, with a footprint spanning more than 100 countries. The organization focuses on three core therapy areas — oncology, cardiovascular and metabolic disease, and respiratory and immunology — while also advancing treatments in rare diseases and vaccines, with a pipeline consistently regarded as one of the most productive in the industry. Employing tens of thousands of professionals globally, the organization combines the resource depth of a top-tier pharma company with a genuine culture of scientific curiosity, spanning research programs in small molecules, biologics, cell therapy, and RNA technologies. In 2026, employees voted this organization onto Glassdoor's Best Places to Work list, and it holds an overall Glassdoor rating of 4.0 stars from nearly 8,000 reviews, with 79% of employees saying they would recommend working here to a friend. Teams here span oncology researchers, clinical trial specialists, regulatory scientists, commercial and market access professionals, as well as scientists and engineers working across upstream process development, molecular biology, analytical biochemistry, and automation.

About GTT

GTT is a minority-owned staffing firm and a subsidiary of Chenega Corporation, a Native American-owned company in Alaska. We highly value diverse and inclusive workplaces and support Fortune 500 organizations across banking, financial services, technology, life sciences, biotech, utilities, and retail sectors throughout the U.S. and Canada.

Benefits

• Medical, Vision, and Dental Insurance Plans
• 401k Retirement Fund

Job Number: 26-13951

#LI-Onsite