2025 Precision Medicine Oncology Translational Research Intern

AbbVie's mission is to discover and deliver innovative medicines and solutions that solve serious health issues today and address the medical challenges of tomorrow. We strive to have a remarkable impact on people's lives across several key therapeutic areas – immunology, oncology, neuroscience, and eye care – and products and services in our Allergan Aesthetics portfolio. For more information about AbbVie, please visit us at www.abbvie.com. Follow @abbvie on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and LinkedIn. 

Oncology Translational Research Intern Overview

Envision spending your summer working with energetic colleagues and inspirational leaders, all while gaining world-class experience in one of the most dynamic organizations in the pharmaceutical industry. This is a reality for AbbVie Interns.

The Precision Medicine organization within AbbVie is committed to driving translational research and clinical biomarker strategy for our pre-clinical and clinical stage programs. The Translational Research group within the Precision Medicine Oncology department uses advanced technologies to study cancer biology, discover biomarkers and validate mechanisms of action of AbbVie’s innovative oncology pipelines to inform clinical decisions, including biomarkers, indication/patient selection, and combinations.  

We are seeking a highly motivated intern with a strong scientific background in cancer biology, a passion for translational research, and a proven track record of research accomplishments to join this dynamic team.  The successful candidate will work both within the Translational Oncology group and as a member of cross-functional interdisciplinary teams and investigate determinants of Topoisomerase 1 inhibitors (TOP1i) sensitivity to facilitate patient selection to our TOP1i-antibody drug conjugates (ADCs).

This internship position will be based in North Chicago, IL.

Key responsibilities include:

• Independently design and conduct translational research experiments to inform patient selection for advancing the AbbVie oncology pipeline.
• Lead the development, optimization, and validation of new assays.
• Apply cell and molecular biology techniques (multi-color flow cytometry, MSD, Luminex, 10x, PCR/NGS) to identify and evaluate biomarkers using clinical samples.
• Be versed in the current state of the science of functional genomics and omic analysis.

Minimum Qualifications 

• Currently enrolled in university, pursuing a PhD in Cancer Biology or other related field
• Must be enrolled in university for at least one semester following the internship
• Exceptional technical precision using standard techniques (flow cytometry, , cytotoxicity assays, ELISA, etc.) primary cell culture, tissue processing, as well as standard molecular biology and biochemical techniques.
• Knowledge of analytical software and statistics for routine data analysis is desirable.
• Demonstrated scientific writing skills and strong verbal communication skills.

Preferred Qualifications

• Expected graduation date between December 2025 – July 2026
• Broadly trained in cell biology and translational oncology
• Hands-on experience in generating and analyzing multi-parameter gene and protein datasets is highly desirable (RNASeq, Nanostring, FACS, etc.)
• Knowledge and hands-on experience in DNA damage and repair pathways.

Benefits and Amenities

• Competitive pay
• Relocation support for eligible students
• Select wellness benefits and paid holiday / sick time

Equal Employment Opportunity
At AbbVie, we value bringing together individuals from diverse backgrounds to develop new and innovative solutions for patients. As an equal opportunity employer we do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex (including pregnancy), physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, marital status, protected veteran status, or any other legally protected characteristic.

Applicable only to applicants applying to a position in any location with pay disclosure requirements under state or local law: ​

• The compensation range described below is the range of possible base pay compensation that the Company believes in good faith it will pay for this role at the time of this posting based on the job grade for this position. Individual compensation paid within this range will depend on many factors including geographic location, and we may ultimately pay more or less than the posted range. This range may be modified in the future.​

Note: No amount of pay is considered to be wages or compensation until such amount is earned, vested, and determinable. The amount and availability of any bonus, commission, incentive, benefits, or any other form of compensation and benefits that are allocable to a particular employee remains in the Company's sole and absolute discretion unless and until paid and may be modified at the Company’s sole and absolute discretion, consistent with applicable law. ​

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AbbVie is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to operating with integrity, driving innovation, transforming lives, serving our community and embracing diversity and inclusion.  It is AbbVie’s policy to employ qualified persons of the greatest ability without discrimination against any employee or applicant for employment because of race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex (including pregnancy), physical or mental disability, medical condition, genetic information, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, marital status, status as a protected veteran, or any other legally protected group status.

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