Principal Scientist - Colloidal & Granular Materials Characterization

Make your mark for patients

We are looking for a Principal Scientist – Colloidal & Granular Materials Characterization who is collaborative, curious and self-motivated to join us in our Development Sciences team, based in our Braine-L’Alleud campus, in Belgium.

About the role

You will play a key role in generating scientific insight that supports product development decisions. Working across a broad range of materials and therapeutic approaches, you will connect particle and materials properties to product manufacturability, performance and stability. You will design and interpret experiments, explore new analytical approaches, and communicate clear recommendations that help move development forward.

Who you’ll work with

You will be working in a team that combines deep materials science expertise with a practical, Quality by Design and collaborative mindset. You will partner with colleagues across formulation, analytical sciences, process development and device development, while also working with external research and technology partners. This is a team that values shared learning, innovation and high-quality science.

What you’ll do

• Generate materials and particle insights across modalities (NBE, Gene Therapy and NCE) that support product design and development decisions.


• Plan, run and interpret experiments using a broad range of characterisation techniques (including laser diffraction, dynamic imaging, DLS, rheology, mechanical behavior, …), adapting approaches to modality-specific needs:
  
  
  
  • Protein aggregation, silicon droplets / subvisible particles.
  
  
  • Colloidal systems (nano particle complex formation and isolation, …).
  
  
  • Crystalline, amorphous materials.
  
  
  
  

• Explore how material properties, formulation ingredients and process conditions affect product manufacturability (e.g., solid oral dosage forms, biologics processing, advanced delivery systems including viral/non-viral vectors) and performance.


• Perform and interpret advanced chemical and spatial imaging (e.g., IR, SEM-EDX, Optical microscopy, XCT, …) on materials to understand microstructure.


• Apply QbD principles, mechanistic understanding, and multivariate analysis to establish critical material attributes (CMAs).


• Partner with colleagues and external collaborators to solve complex scientific challenges.


• Share knowledge through reports, presentations and mentoring.

Interested? For this role we’re looking for the following education, experience and skills

• Doctoral degree, or equivalent experience, in materials science, engineering, physical sciences or a related field. 


• Minimum 5 years of industry experience in pharmaceuticals or another relevant scientific field.


• Hands-on experience in colloidal and granular materials characterisation.


• Confidence working with complex scientific data and drawing practical conclusions.


• Ability to work across teams and manage multiple priorities effectively.


• Strong communication skills and a collaborative, reliable working style.

Are you ready to ‘go beyond’ to create value and make your mark for patients? If this sounds like you, then we would love to hear from you! 

About us 
UCB is a global biopharmaceutical company, focusing on neurology and immunology. We are over 9.000 people in all four corners of the globe, inspired by patients and driven by science. 

Why work with us? 
At UCB, we don’t just complete tasks, we create value. We aren’t afraid to push forward, collaborate, and innovate to make our mark for patients. We have a caring, supportive culture where everyone feels included, respected, and has equal opportunities to do their best work. We ‘go beyond’ to create value for our patients, and always with a human focus, whether that’s on our patients, our employees, or our planet. Working for us, you will discover a place where you can grow, and have the freedom to carve your own career path to achieve your full potential. 

At UCB, we’ve embraced a hybrid-first approach to work, bringing teams together in local hubs to foster collaborative curiosity. Unless expressly stated in the description or precluded by the nature of the position, roles are hybrid with 40% of your time spent in the office.

UCB is an equal opportunity employer. All employment decisions will be made without regard to any characteristic protected by applicable laws. 
 
Should you require any adjustments to our process to assist you in demonstrating your strengths and capabilities contact us on [email protected]. Please note should your enquiry not relate to adjustments; we will not be able to support you through this channel.