Senior Scientist II, Rheumatology

About the role

Bring your scientific expertise to AbbVie and help drive the next wave of discovery in rheumatology. Join the Rheumatology team at the Cambridge Research Center as a Senior Scientist II within Discovery Immunology R&D. You will help shape preclinical drug discovery programs through target validation, mechanism-of-action studies, and translational research-connecting scientific insight with the development of potential new therapies.

Bring your expertise in immunology and inflammation biology, hands-on preclinical pharmacology experience, and in vivo model development skills to challenging questions in autoimmune disease. You will connect human disease biology with preclinical approaches and generate high-quality data packages that inform program decisions. Your scientific insight and experimental rigor will help advance differentiated therapeutic programs across the Immunology portfolio.

Key responsibilities include

• Lead a team of scientists to generate high-quality data packages that support drug candidate advancement from lead optimization through IND filing.
• Drive in vitro and in vivo pharmacology for drug candidates, including establishing PK/PD relationships, developing and optimizing screening assays, designing and executing mechanism-of-action studies, and evaluating candidate efficacy.
• Develop acute and/or chronic murine models of inflammation relevant to rheumatological diseases, including RA, PsA, and SLE, to support preclinical candidate development.
• Apply immunological techniques such as flow cytometry, PCR/gene expression analysis, protein and cytokine quantification, histopathology, and other relevant functional readouts.
• Design experiments, analyze data, and present findings at AbbVie scientific forums and external conferences.
• Author and review technical reports, protocols, and other key scientific documents.
• Bring your pharmacology expertise to pipeline programs as a functional representative, contributing to target evaluation, mechanism-of-action (MoA) studies, and model development.
• Adhere to corporate standards related to code of conduct, documentation, safety, proper handling of materials, and humane treatment of laboratory animals.

Qualifications & Requirements

• Bachelor's Degree or equivalent education and typically, 12 years of experience, Master's Degree or equivalent education and typically 10 years of experience, PhD and typically 4 years of experience.
• Experience managing research associates preferred.
• Proven expertise in in vitro and preclinical in vivo model systems, with hands-on experience in preclinical pharmacology and in vivo model development.
• Excellent interpersonal, communication, and collaboration skills
• Ability to work effectively in a highly collaborative environment, including cross-functional teams and colleagues across multiple locations to support team and company goals.

Key Leadership Competencies

• Build strong relationships with peers and cross functionally with partners outside of the immediate team to enable higher performance.
• Learns fast, grasps the "essence" and can change course quickly as needed.
• Creates a learning environment, open to suggestions and experiments to drive science in the field of interest.
• Embraces the ideas of others, nurtures innovation and manages innovation to reality.

Additional Information

Applicable only to applicants applying to a position in any location with pay disclosure requirements under state or local law:

• The compensation range described below is the range of possible base pay compensation that the Company believes in good faith it will pay for this role at the time of this posting based on the job grade for this position. Individual compensation paid within this range will depend on many factors including geographic location, and we may ultimately pay more or less than the posted range. This range may be modified in the future.
• We offer a comprehensive package of benefits including paid time off (vacation, holidays, sick), medical/dental/vision insurance and 401(k) to eligible employees.
• This job is eligible to participate in our long-term incentive programs.

Note: No amount of pay is considered to be wages or compensation until such amount is earned, vested, and determinable. The amount and availability of any bonus, commission, incentive, benefits, or any other form of compensation and benefits that are allocable to a particular employee remains in the Company's sole and absolute discretion unless and until paid and may be modified at the Company's sole and absolute discretion, consistent with applicable law.