INTERNSHIP DETAILS
2026 Future Talent Program - Research – Chemical Biology- Co-Op
CompanyMerck
LocationCambridge
Work ModeOn Site
PostedJanuary 16, 2026

Internship Information
Core Responsibilities
The successful candidate will aggregate, organize, and analyze high-content imaging data and perform hands-on laboratory work. They will also analyze and interpret datasets and present findings to the team.
Internship Type
full time
Salary Range
$39,600 - $105,500
Company Size
40816
Visa Sponsorship
No
Language
English
Working Hours
40 hours
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About The Company
At MSD, known as Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA in the United States and Canada, we are unified around our purpose: We use the power of leading-edge science to save and improve lives around the world. For more than 130 years, we have brought hope to humanity through the development of important medicines and vaccines. We aspire to be the premier research-intensive biopharmaceutical company in the world – and today, we are at the forefront of research to deliver innovative health solutions that advance the prevention and treatment of diseases in people and animals. We foster a diverse and inclusive global workforce and operate responsibly every day to enable a safe, sustainable and healthy future for all people and communities. For more information, visit www.msd.com and connect with us on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter, and YouTube.
About the Role
<p style="text-align:left"><b>Job Description</b></p><p style="text-align:inherit"></p><p><span>The Future Talent Program features Cooperative (Co-op) education that lasts up to 6 months and will include one or more projects. These opportunities in our Research and Development Division can provide you with great development and a chance to see if we are the right company for your long-term goals.</span></p><p></p><p>We are Chemical Biology in the Quantitative Biosciences department at Our Company, where we leverage robust scientific methodology and state-of-the-art instrumentation to collaborate on driving the next medical breakthrough. Our mission is to advance the best drug candidates into the clinic by utilizing advanced capabilities that enable higher-resolution interrogations of novel biology and elucidation of mechanisms of action.</p><p></p><p>We are seeking a highly motivated Co-op scientist to contribute to our early drug discovery work. The successful candidate will focus on high-content imaging, morphological profiling, and multimodal data integration to study complex biological systems and support molecular mechanism-of-action studies.</p><p></p><p><u><b>Key Responsibilities:</b></u></p><p>• Aggregate, organize, and analyze high-content imaging data (e.g., cell painting, phenotypic profiling, live-cell imaging) to integrate multimodal datasets.</p><p>• Perform hands-on laboratory work including mammalian cell culture, perturbation experiments, and imaging-based assay execution.</p><p>• Analyze and interpret datasets and present findings to team.</p><p></p><p><u><b>Learning Opportunities:</b></u></p><p>• Gain hands-on experience in image-based profiling and multimodal data integration.</p><p>• Develop skills in experimental design, computational data analysis, and data-driven biological insight generation.</p><p>• Collaborate with experienced scientists in a fast-paced research environment.</p><p></p><p><u><b>Required Qualifications:</b></u></p><p>• Must be currently enrolled undergraduate or graduate student (BS, MS, or PhD) in biological sciences, bioengineering, computational biology, or related field.</p><p>• Must have experience with high-content imaging or microscopy-based data & analysis of multimodal biological datasets (examples: imaging data combined with RNA-Seq, small molecule/CRISPR-based high throughput screens, and / or proteomics data).</p><p>• Must possess proficiency with data analysis tools or programming languages (e.g., Python, R, MATLAB, or similar).</p><p></p><p><u><b>Preferred Qualifications:</b></u></p><p>• Prior hands-on experience with mammalian cell culture and imaging assays, including Cell Painting.</p><p>• Prior experience with multimodal data aggregation and visualization.</p><p></p><p>Co-Op Details:</p><p>• Location: Cambridge, MA</p><p>• Commitment: 6 months (start date flexible; by June 15th, 2026)</p><p></p><p><b>Please note that this position may be closed before the posted end date or may remain open longer, at the discretion of the company.</b></p><p></p><p><b>Salary range:</b></p><p>The salary range for this role is $39,600.00-$105,500.00 USD</p><p></p><p>FTP2026</p><p>RL2026</p><p></p><p><b>Required Skills:</b></p><p></p><p><b>Preferred Skills:</b></p><p style="text-align:inherit"></p><p style="text-align:left">Current Employees apply <a href="https://wd5.myworkday.com/msd/d/task/1422$6687.htmld" target="_blank">HERE</a></p><p style="text-align:inherit"></p><p style="text-align:left">Current Contingent Workers apply <a href="https://wd5.myworkday.com/msd/d/task/1422$4020.htmld" target="_blank">HERE</a></p><p style="text-align:inherit"></p><p style="text-align:left"><b>US and Puerto Rico Residents Only:</b></p><p style="text-align:inherit"></p><p style="text-align:left"><span>Our company is committed to inclusion, ensuring that candidates can engage in a hiring process that exhibits their true capabilities. Please </span><a href="https://survey.sogosurvey.com/r/aCdfqL" target="_blank">click here</a><span> if you need an accommodation during the application or hiring process.</span></p><p style="text-align:left">As an Equal Employment Opportunity Employer, we provide equal opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibit discrimination on the basis of race, color, age, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, protected veteran status, disability status, or other applicable legally protected <span><span><span><span><span><span class="WKQ0">characteristics. As</span></span></span></span></span></span> a federal contractor, we comply with all affirmative action requirements for protected veterans and individuals with disabilities. For more information about personal rights under the U.S. Equal Opportunity Employment laws, visit:</p><p style="text-align:inherit"></p><p style="text-align:left"><a href="https://www.eeoc.gov/sites/default/files/2022-10/22-088_EEOC_KnowYourRights_10_20.pdf" target="_blank">EEOC Know Your Rights</a></p><p style="text-align:left"><a href="https://www.eeoc.gov/gina-genetic-information-nondiscrimination" target="_blank">EEOC GINA Supplement</a></p><p style="text-align:inherit"></p><p style="text-align:left">We are proud to be a company that embraces the value of bringing together, talented, and committed people with diverse experiences, perspectives, skills and backgrounds. The fastest way to breakthrough innovation is when people with diverse ideas, broad experiences, backgrounds, and skills come together in an inclusive environment. We encourage our colleagues to respectfully challenge one another’s thinking and approach problems collectively.</p><p style="text-align:inherit"></p><p style="text-align:inherit"></p><p style="text-align:left"><a target="_blank" href="https://www.msdprivacy.com/us/en/CCPA-notice/">Learn more about your rights, including under California, Colorado and other US State Acts</a></p><p style="text-align:inherit"></p><p style="text-align:left"><u><b>U.S. Hybrid Work Model</b></u></p><p style="text-align:inherit"></p><p style="text-align:left">Effective September 5, 2023, employees in office-based positions in the U.S. will be working a Hybrid work consisting of three total days on-site per week, Monday - Thursday, although the specific days may vary by site or organization, with Friday designated as a remote-working day, unless business critical tasks require an on-site presence.This Hybrid work model does not apply to, and daily in-person attendance is required for, field-based positions; facility-based, manufacturing-based, or research-based positions where the work to be performed is located at a Company site; positions covered by a <span><span><span><span><span><span><span class="WKQ0">collective-bargaining</span></span></span></span></span></span></span> agreement (unless the agreement provides for hybrid work); or any other position for which the Company has determined the job requirements cannot be reasonably met working remotely. Please note, this Hybrid work model guidance also does not apply to roles that have been designated as “remote”.</p><p style="text-align:inherit"></p><p style="text-align:left"><b><span>San Francisco Residents Only:</span></b><span> We will consider qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records for employment in compliance with the San Francisco Fair Chance Ordinance</span></p><p style="text-align:inherit"></p><p style="text-align:left"><b><span>Los Angeles Residents Only:</span></b><span> We will consider for employment all qualified applicants, including those with criminal histories, in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable state and local laws, including the City of Los Angeles’ Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance</span></p><p style="text-align:inherit"></p><p style="text-align:left"><b>Search Firm Representatives Please Read Carefully </b><br />Merck & Co., Inc., Rahway, NJ, USA, also known as Merck Sharp & Dohme LLC, Rahway, NJ, USA, does not accept unsolicited assistance from search firms for employment opportunities. All CVs / resumes submitted by search firms to any employee at our company without a valid written search agreement in place for this position will be deemed the sole property of our company. No fee will be paid in the event a candidate is hired by our company as a result of an agency referral where no pre-existing agreement is in place. Where agency agreements are in place, introductions are position specific. Please, no phone calls or emails. </p><p style="text-align:inherit"></p><p style="text-align:left"><b>Employee Status: </b></p>Intern/Co-op (Fixed Term)<p style="text-align:inherit"></p><p style="text-align:left"><b>Relocation:</b></p>No relocation<p style="text-align:inherit"></p><p style="text-align:left"><b>VISA Sponsorship:</b></p>No<p style="text-align:inherit"></p><p style="text-align:left"><b><span>Travel Requirements:</span></b></p>No Travel Required<p style="text-align:inherit"></p><p style="text-align:left"><b>Flexible Work Arrangements:</b></p>Not Applicable<p style="text-align:inherit"></p><p style="text-align:left"><b>Shift:</b></p>Not Indicated<p style="text-align:inherit"></p><p style="text-align:left"><b>Valid Driving License:</b></p>No<p style="text-align:inherit"></p><p style="text-align:left"><b>Hazardous Material(s):</b></p>Yes<p style="text-align:inherit"></p><p style="text-align:left"><b>Job Posting End Date:</b></p>02/6/2026<p style="text-align:left"><b><span>*A job posting is effective until 11:59:59PM on the day <u>BEFORE</u> the listed job posting end date. Please ensure you apply to a job posting no later than the day <u>BEFORE</u> the job posting end date. </span></b></p><br><p><b>Requisition ID:</b>R380805</p>
Key Skills
High-Content ImagingMorphological ProfilingMultimodal Data IntegrationData AnalysisMammalian Cell CultureImaging AssaysExperimental DesignComputational Data AnalysisBiological Insight GenerationPythonRMATLABCell PaintingData AggregationVisualization
Categories
Science & ResearchHealthcareTechnology
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