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Industry Postdoc Jobs (NOW HIRING)

Virginia Tech

Postdoctoral Associate

Blacksburg, VA · On-site

Postdoctoral Associate Apply now Back to search results Job no: 535836 Work type: Research Faculty ... Coordinate with industry partners to plan and execute field sampling campaigns in full-scale ...

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$25K

$59K

$83.5K

How much do industry postdoc jobs pay per year?

As of Jun 8, 2026, the average yearly pay for industry postdoc in the United States is $59,022.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $49,000.00 and $66,500.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What is an Industry Postdoc?

An Industry Postdoc is a temporary research position offered by companies to PhD graduates, allowing them to further develop their research skills in a corporate setting. Unlike traditional academic postdoctoral positions, industry postdocs focus on projects with direct commercial or product-driven applications. These roles offer exposure to business practices, product development, and teamwork in interdisciplinary environments. Industry postdocs often serve as a bridge to full-time roles in industry and can provide valuable networking opportunities. The positions typically last 1–3 years and may lead to permanent employment within the company.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as an Industry Postdoc, and why are they important?

To thrive as an Industry Postdoc, you need a doctoral degree in a relevant scientific or technical field, strong research methodology, and data analysis skills. Familiarity with laboratory equipment, statistical software, and industry-specific tools (such as Python, MATLAB, or chromatography systems) is often required. Effective communication, teamwork, and adaptability are crucial soft skills for collaborating with diverse teams and aligning research with business objectives. These skills and qualities ensure impactful research outcomes, foster innovation, and support successful integration into fast-paced industry environments.

What is the difference between Industry Postdoc vs Research Scientist?

AspectIndustry PostdocResearch Scientist
Required CredentialsPhD in relevant field, postdoctoral experiencePhD, often with additional experience or publications
Work EnvironmentAcademic-style research labs within industryIndustry R&D departments, corporate labs
Employer & Industry UsageUniversities, research institutions, some companiesPrivate companies, biotech, tech firms
Common Search & ComparisonYesYes

Industry Postdocs are typically temporary research positions for recent PhDs to gain industry experience, often in academic-style labs. Research Scientists are more permanent roles focused on product development, innovation, and applied research within industry settings. While both require a PhD, Research Scientists usually have more industry experience and responsibilities.

What are some common challenges industry postdocs face when transitioning from academia to a corporate research environment?

Industry postdocs often encounter challenges such as adapting to faster-paced project timelines, aligning research goals with business objectives, and collaborating with cross-functional teams that may include non-scientists. Unlike academia, where research can be more exploratory, industry projects typically prioritize practical applications and measurable outcomes. Learning to communicate scientific findings to stakeholders with varying technical backgrounds is also a key adjustment. However, these challenges can provide valuable skills and broaden career prospects in both research and development roles.
What cities are hiring for Industry Postdoc jobs? Cities with the most Industry Postdoc job openings:
What states have the most Industry Postdoc jobs? States with the most job openings for Industry Postdoc jobs include:
Industry Postdoc jobs near you
Infographic showing various Industry Postdoc job openings in the United States as of May 2026, with employment types broken down into 1% As Needed, 89% Full Time, and 10% Contract. Highlights an 93% Physical, 2% Hybrid, and 5% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $59,022 per year, or $28.4 per hour.
Advisor - Agent Research

Advisor - Agent Research

Eli Lilly and Company

South San Francisco, CA • On-site

Full-time

This job post has expired today. Applications are no longer accepted.

Eli Lilly and Company rating

8.8

Company rating: 8.8 out of 10

Based on 62 frontline employees who took The Breakroom Quiz

11th of 71 rated pharmaceutical

Job description

Job Summary:
Eli Lilly and Company is a global healthcare leader headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana, dedicated to improving lives through innovative medicines. They are seeking a scientist-engineer hybrid to deploy AI-driven discovery platforms that bridge cutting-edge AI systems and drug discovery workflows.
Responsibilities:
• Partner with chemists and biologists to translate scientific workflows into agentic systems
• Deploy and integrate Agentic AI system into active research programs
• Design and implement cloud-native data pipelines connecting lab instruments, databases, and AI models
• Support model deployment, inference services, and experiment tracking (e.g., MLflow)
• Integrate LLM reasoning with domain tools (RDKit, molecular graph ML, ELN/LIMS APIs, instrument drivers) to build composite agents that plan, simulate, and execute DMTA tasks
• Prototype and iterate rapidly on agent planning strategies, memory systems, and human-in-the-loop patterns
• Represent Frontier AI in the broader AI@Lilly and external AI research community: publish, give talks, review papers, and scout emerging trends.
• Evaluate external vendors, open-source projects, and academic collaborations for strategic fit.
Qualifications:
Required:
• PhD (or MS + 2 yrs / BS + 4 yrs equivalent experience) in Bioinformatics, Cheminformatics, Computer Science, or related discipline with demonstrated wet-lab collaboration or experience.
• Approximately 1-2 years of demonstrated experience of applying AI/ML in scientific discipline such as biology, chemistry, neuroscience, or a related field (industry postdoc counts)
Preferred:
• Proficiency in Python and deep experience with ML/Deep Learning frameworks (e.g., PyTorch, Tensorflow, JAX, HuggingFace).
• Hands-on experience building agentic AI systems (e.g., LangChain, OpenAI Agents SDK)
• Experience designing and shipping end-to-end systems in cloud environments (backend APIs, lightweight frontends, and agentic platforms) - GitHub portfolio a plus
• Strong DevOps/engineering skills: version control (git), containerization (docker, kubernetes), GitOps + CI/CD practices, data systems (Redis, SQL/NoSQL), unit testing, frontend (streamlit, flask)
• Working knowledge of cloud-native (AWS/Azure) pipeline architectures including Nextflow, Argo on Kubernetes
• Familiarity with MLOps, including model versioning, data versioning, and continuous integration/continuous deployment for ML systems.
• Experience with LLM post-training, fine-tuning, or RLHF
• Demonstrable research experience, evidenced by contributions to projects, and ideally through publications in relevant ML/NLP venues (e.g., NeurIPS, ICML, ICLR, ACL, EMNLP).
• Experience mentoring and guiding junior researchers or engineers.
Company:
We're a medicine company turning science into healing to make life better for people around the world. Founded in 1876, the company is headquartered in Indianapolis, USA, with a team of 10001+ employees. The company is currently Late Stage.

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About Eli Lilly

Sourced by ZipRecruiter

Eli Lilly, based in Indianapolis, IN, US, is one of the pioneers in the pharmaceutical industry with a rich history dating back to 1876. This global pharmaceutical company focuses on discovering, developing, manufacturing and selling pharmaceutical products in approximately 120 countries. The company's product categories include endocrinology, oncology, cardiovascular, neuroscience, and immunology. Having invested over $9 billion in research and development in the past decade, Eli Lilly is also committed to creating high-quality medicines that meet real needs. As a recipient of several awards and recognitions, Eli Lilly is known for its focus on life-saving research and drug development. Their mission is to make medicines that help people live longer, healthier, and more active lives.

Industry

Pharmaceutical product wholesalers

Company size

10,000+ Employees

Headquarters location

Indianapolis, IN, US

Year founded

1876

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