RiSM Internship: PFAS-Free Analysis of Peptide APIs (Basel, 12 months)
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The Position
Analytical Development & Quality Control is part of Pharma Technical Development and situated in Basel, Switzerland.
Our key expertise is the application of innovative analytical science and technology to a synthetic molecule portfolio of projects from GLP-tox studies over all clinical phases to commercialization. We are providing analytical activities for the areas of chemical and pharmaceutical development, as well as quality control for clinical supply following international GMP and safety requirements. Furthermore, we ensure adequate Manufacturing Analytics for IMP and commercial drug substance manufacturing and special support for Biologics manufacturing.
As an intern you will support the department Analytical Development & Quality Control in evaluating and developing PFAS-free alternative analytical methods for New Chemical Entities (NCEs) like peptides.
The Opportunity
Comprehensive Onboarding & Training: Receive structured training in relevant Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), advanced analytical instrumentation, and industry-standard software to build a robust foundation for your lab work.
Foundational literature review: Conduct a comprehensive literature review of current PFAS-free analytical techniques for the characterization of NCEs
Contribute to green chemistry initiatives: Participate in cutting-edge, sustainable research aimed at replacing hazardous solvents and modifiers with eco-friendly, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS)-free alternatives in standard analytical workflows (e.g. RP-HPLC and LC-MS)
Green Method Development for NCEs: Participate in the development and optimization of alternative RP-HPLC analytical methods specifically designed for the characterization of NCEs
Project Collaboration & Scientific communication: Actively participate in regular alignment meetings with your supervisors to discuss project progress and troubleshoot challenges. Conclude your internship by authoring a comprehensive final report and delivering a professional presentation of your findings to the scientific team
Who you are
You are a university student (or you graduated within 12 months prior to the start date) preferably in the subject of Chemistry, Pharmaceutical Sciences, Biochemistry and have an interest in technical and analytical issues. Furthermore, you are interested in using and sharing your knowledge as part of your internship in a modern working environment. Your further profile for this position:
Experienced in a foundational laboratory setting, with basic knowledge of operating HPLC/UHPLC and LC-MS systems, and ideally possessing hands-on experience with NCEs (e.g. peptides or oligonucleotides)
Sustainability-driven and deeply enthusiastic about finding eco-friendly solutions to traditional chemical processes
Analytical and detail-oriented in your day-to-day working style
Proactive and team-oriented when collaborating with supervisors and colleagues
Skilled in MS Office (Word, Excel, PowerPoint), with proficiency in English and German viewed as a strong plus.
This internship opportunity is one of a few positions we offer in the department per semester and is not suitable for writing a Bachelor/Master/Diploma thesis.
The interviews will take place on an interview day with all considered candidates and representatives of the department.
Your complete application includes the following documents:
A Current CV and a Motivation Letter
A certificate of enrollment (if you are currently studying)
For Non-EU/EFTA citizens: Due to regulations, you must provide a certificate issued by your university stating that an internship is mandatory for your studies and you must be enrolled during the entire duration of the internship
The RiSM task (see below)
Application process
The application deadline is 23.08.2026. All successful final candidates will be invited to a virtual interview day which will take place on 14.10.2026.
The Internship will start as soon as possible and has a duration of 9-12 months, please indicate your preferred start date in your application.
More information about the Roche Internship program in Synthetic Molecules (RiSM) and other opportunities within this program you can find here.
Are you ready to apply? We are looking for someone who thinks beyond the job offered - someone who knows that this position can be a rare springboard to many other opportunities.
Additional information (RISM Task)
Assume you are an Analytical Development Chemist tasked with designing sustainable, eco-friendly analytical methodologies to optimize standard LC methods (e.g. RP-HPLC), which rely heavily on toxic Acetonitrile (ACN) and environmentally persistent Trifluoroacetic acid (TFA).
Your mission is to map out a concrete, actionable roadmap to "green" these analytical processes without compromising the resolution and sensitivity required for synthetic molecule analysis.
Using the provided articles by Marakova (2024) and Olives et al. (2017) (see below) as background, your strategy should address the analytical challenges of "going green", alternative LC solvents/additives, and alternative chromatographic techniques (e.g. HIC).
Your Task: Submit a slide deck (maximum of 5 slides, PDF format) alongside your application outlining this green transition roadmap suitable for presentation to a project team.
References:
Marakova, K.: Greening separation and purification of proteins and peptides. Journal of separation science, 2024, 47, https://doi.org/10.1002/jssc.202400554.
Olives Ana I., Gonzalez-Ruiz Victor, Martin M. Antonia: Sustainable and eco-friendly alternatives for liquid chromatographic analysis, 2017, ACS Sustainable Chemistry & Engineering, https://doi.org/10.1021/acssuschemeng.7b01012
Who we are
A healthier future drives us to innovate. Together, more than 100’000 employees across the globe are dedicated to advance science, ensuring everyone has access to healthcare today and for generations to come. Our efforts result in more than 26 million people treated with our medicines and over 30 billion tests conducted using our Diagnostics products. We empower each other to explore new possibilities, foster creativity, and keep our ambitions high, so we can deliver life-changing healthcare solutions that make a global impact.
Let’s build a healthier future, together.
Roche is an Equal Opportunity Employer.