Slingshot is seeking a polymer scientist/engineer to join our team in a full-time capacity. This is a high-impact role at the intersection of chemistry, materials science, biology and instrumentation - offering a chance to shape the technical roadmap for products that will positively impact human health.

As a key contributor to our R&D efforts, you will lead technical strategy, design and conduct complex experiments, and translate experimental insights into meaningful innovations. You will work alongside a multidisciplinary team, and ensure that our R&D milestones drive the company's overall mission forward.

This position is ideal for a self-motivated individual with a proactive, can-do attitude who thrives in a fast-paced, collaborative environment. Join us at a critical stage of development as we push the boundaries of advanced polymer manufacturing. You will have the opportunity to shape a novel high-throughput platform, lead technical reviews, and influence key decisions with long-term impact on our technology roadmap.

Location: This is an on-site position based in Emeryville, California.

Key Responsibilities

• Design and develop new polymer chemistry and formulations for innovative synthetic cell products.
• Ownership of technical projects, designing and conducting rigorous experiments 
• Lead the technical strategy for scale-up, validation, and optimization of polymer manufacturing systems.
• Lead technical reviews and contribute proof-of-concept data to inform critical strategic decision-making.
• Perform bench-scale scale-up studies and validation studies, such as variability, reproducibility, and stability. 
• Drive innovation by collaborating cross-functionally to optimize the interplay between polymer chemistry, hardware, and production processes.
• Set up, operate, and troubleshoot laboratory hardware, fluidic components, and analytical instrumentation.
• Work directly with pumps, sensors, and fluidic components to diagnose and resolve system issues.
• Analyze complex scientific data sets to present actionable findings, assess experimental results and guide optimization decisions.
• Actively contribute in cross-functional teams, generate/deliver technical reports, and train other technical staff.

Qualifications

• PhD with 0-2 years of industry experience, or MS with ~5 years of relevant industry experience
• Foundational expertise in Chemical Engineering, Bioengineering, Polymer Chemistry, Materials Science, or a related discipline.
• Demonstrated success in independently identifying and resolving complex technical roadblocks in a fast-paced environment.
• Strong grasp of polymer chemistry, engineering, instrumentation, and materials science
• High level of comfort working and designing hands-on with physical scientific hardware, pumps, sensors, and fluidic components.
• Capabilities in scientific data analysis and statistical evaluation of experimental results.
• Prior experience with emulsions, colloidal stability, surfactants, hydrogels, microfluidics, or precision fluidic systems.
• Familiarity with Design of Experiments (DoE) principles to accelerate systems optimization preferred but not required.

Our salary ranges are calculated by role and level. Your position within that range will be determined by your job-related knowledge, skills, experience, relevant education, and training/certifications. In addition to those factors, we also examine internal equity as well as consider current market rate, and title may be assessed one level lower or higher accordingly. After you join the company your performance, contributions, and results along with business and organizational needs will affect your base salary. The base annual salary range for this position is between $110,000 - $135,000.