Drug Discovery Data Scientist

About Us

Exscientia is an AI-driven precision medicine company committed to discovering, designing and developing the best possible drugs in the fastest and most effective manner. Exscientia developed the first-ever functional precision oncology platform to successfully guide treatment selection and improve patient outcomes in a prospective interventional clinical study, as well as to progress AI-designed small molecules into the clinical setting.

Our internal pipeline is focused on leveraging our precision medicine platform in oncology, while our partnered pipeline broadens our approach to other therapeutic areas. By pioneering a new approach to medicine creation, we believe the best ideas of science can rapidly become the best medicines for patients.

The Role

We’re seeking a Drug Discovery Data Scientist to help accelerate our application of AI and machine learning to live drug discovery projects and contribute to the evolution of our tech stack. As a member of the Discovery Data Sciences team, this position is integral to support and build Exscientia’s data science capability as it executes the next phase of its life cycle. We are looking for a Data Scientist with knowledge of drug discovery to work closely with Drug Designers, Engineers and AI Scientists to help provide the predictive capabilities that underpin our drug design platform.

Please note this is a hybrid role and regular travel is required to our offices in Oxford, UK (approximately once per month), with flexibility to work from home in the UK the remaining time. We are a flexible working organisation and we're willing to consider other options which would provide similar contact with the team.

You will have the opportunity to:

• Apply your machine learning and AI skills, and creativity with diverse discovery data, to a range of applied drug discovery challenges, including prediction of bioactivity, selectivity, ADMET and pharmacokinetic properties, from ligand- and structure-based perspectives.
• Use your analytical and data science skills to monitor, maintain and improve our large-scale machine learning platform.
• Work closely with drug designers to understand and address project issues.
• Work closely with engineering and ML Operations teams to continuously improve our ability to deliver models and algorithms to project teams.
• Work with colleagues to wrangle heterogeneous raw data and devise pipelines that generate clean data suitable for downstream ML and analytics.

Requirements

Essential Skills:

• PhD or equivalent experience in cheminformatics, machine learning, computational chemistry, or related quantitative data science field.
• Knowledge of modern drug discovery technologies and enthusiasm to apply algorithm-derived compound designs.
• Passion for data science and the use of data to make good decisions.
• Proficiency in programming languages such as Python or R, and experience with machine learning frameworks (eg. TensorFlow, PyTorch, Scikit-learn).
• Experience in developing machine learning and deep learning models, methods or algorithms.
• Proficiency in wrangling and curating complex, large-scale chemistry and pharmacology data sets and familiarity with cheminformatics tools (eg. RDKit).
• Strong presentation and interpersonal skills with the ability to work in a multi-disciplinary team and present insights and analysis to stakeholders.

Desirable Skills:

• Understanding of ADMET properties, pharmacokinetics, and medicinal chemistry applied to contemporary drug discovery.
• Experience with active learning techniques.
• Knowledge of multi-task learning, ensemble learning, federated learning, or meta-learning.

Benefits

• Join our inclusive, collaborative and intellectually stimulating organisation with an exciting mission and strong values.
• As a learning organisation, we provide access to learning and development opportunities and will place you at the forefront of your career growth at Exscientia.
• We employ brilliant people so we pay highly competitive salaries. Additionally, all our employees are eligible for a company-wide annual bonus and receive new joiner and annual share awards.
• Enjoy our generous 28 days holiday allowance plus public holidays, with flexibility to carry over or purchase extra holidays.
• We also offer flexible working to find a healthy work-life balance that works for you.
• Create amazing memories or progress your personal and professional development with our four-week paid sabbatical after four years of service.
• We’re leading the way in progressive leave offering enhanced policies so you feel supported no matter the life event. This includes generous parental, fertility, menopause and family emergency leave, and much more. 
• Additionally, we support childcare costs for children aged 0-5 through our affordable childcare scheme.
• Take advantage of two generous salary exchange schemes to claim discounts on a brand new electric vehicle and cycling equipment worth up to £3,500.
• As a healthcare company, we understand the importance of health and wellbeing so we provide comprehensive private health insurance, dental and vision benefits for you and your family.
• We also provide plenty of access to mental health support including therapy and counselling sessions plus an employee assistance program for help with lifestyle issues such as bereavement, family problems or money management.
• To help safeguard the future for you and your loved ones, we also offer pension and life cover.
• Have fun with colleagues at our in-person and remote social events! Get competitive at a quiz or bake off, or relax at a movie night or picnic - there’s something for everyone.
• Collaborate with your team at our uplifting offices and choose a design-led breakout space to inspire creativity. Help yourself to free drinks, snacks and freshly ground coffee in our fully stocked kitchens. Some of the best ideas start with a coffee break!
• Feel inspired by our high-spec tech and use state-of-the-art equipment that empowers you to do your best work.
• We’ll even support your home office environment with an allowance for furniture and equipment to make your space as comfortable and productive as possible.
• Learn more about why our team enjoy working at Exscientia here

DEIB

At Exscientia, we are committed to building a diverse, equitable, and inclusive environment where every employee belongs.

We celebrate and value the diversity of our team, recognising that our differences drive our creativity and innovation forward. This applies to differences in ethnicity, nationality, cultural heritage, age, religion, mental and physical ability, neurodiversity, gender identity and expression, sexual orientation, marital and civil partnership status, family status, and socioeconomic background.

We are committed to providing fair treatment, opportunity and advancement for all employees, and we strive to create an inclusive environment where everyone feels valued, respected and empowered to bring their best selves to work.

If you require any support or adjustments to interact with us, please email careers@exscientia.co.uk