Staff Scientist (Polymer Synthesis)

at  University of Toronto

Date Posted: 11/15/2024
Req ID: 40700
Faculty/Division: Faculty of Arts & Science
Department: Acceleration Consortium
Campus: St. George (Downtown Toronto)

DESCRIPTION:

The Acceleration Consortium (AC) at the University of Toronto (U of T) is leading a transformative shift in scientific discovery that will accelerate technology development and commercialization. The AC is a global community of academia, industry, and government that leverages the power of artificial intelligence (AI), robotics, materials sciences, and high-throughput chemistry to create self-driving laboratories (SDLs), also called materials acceleration platforms (MAPs). These autonomous labs rapidly design materials and molecules needed for a sustainable, healthy, and resilient future, with applications ranging from renewable energy and consumer electronics to drugs. AC Staff Scientists will advance the field of AI-driven autonomous discovery and develop the materials and molecules required to address society’s largest challenges, such as climate change, water pollution, and future pandemics.
The Acceleration Consortium (AC) promotes an inclusive research environment and supports the EDI priorities of the unit.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS:

Education – Ph.D. in chemistry, materials science, life sciences, physics, engineering, robotics, computer science, or related discipline

EXPERIENCE

• Five (5) to 10 years of experience (inclusive of PhD and/or post-graduate work) in accelerated research and development in the area of polymer synthesis
• Experience working closely with a Principal Investigator or as a Principal Investigator or as Project Director with responsibilities of managing, developing and executing a major research project in the area of AI and automation, including hardware integration for automation, high throughput experimentation for dataset generation, AI utilization in experimental planning, and workflow establishment for seamless integration of experiments and simulations.
• Strong experience and expert knowledge of AI and automation
• Experience with overseeing the activities of a lab.
• Experience working with industry partners and on industry led research and development projects.
• Strong experience presenting research at academic conferences.
• Demonstrated record of academic and/or research excellence
• Must have a strong scholarly publication record.

SKILLS

• Proficient in general organic synthesis skills, air and/or moisture sensitive techniques, and common analytical instrumentation.
• Skills in electronic/hardware-oriented programming and machine learning
• Strong and effective communicator in oral and written English
• Collegial in working with team members and collaborators.
• Ability to work independently.

ALL QUALIFIED CANDIDATES ARE ENCOURAGED TO APPLY; HOWEVER, CANADIANS AND PERMANENT RESIDENTS WILL BE GIVEN PRIORITY

Closing Date: 05/30/2025, 11:59PM ET
Employee Group: Research Associate
Appointment Type: Grant - Continuing
Schedule: Full-Time
Pay Scale Group & Hiring Zone: $60,304.00 - $150,000(salary will be assessed based on skills and experience)
Job Category: Administrative / Manageria

TASKS INCLUDE:

• 
  
  
  -
  

Managing the research and development projects of AC’s industry partners when implemented in AC labs.

• Developing plans supporting research collaborations and estimating financial resources required for programs and/or projects.
• Working with Product Managers to ensure research outcomes meet partner requirements.
• Promoting AC’s research capacity, including delivering presentations at conferences.
• Collaboration in preparing and submitting research proposals to granting agencies and progress reporting.
• Preparing manuscripts for submission to peer review publications/journals and stewarding them through the process.