About Open Philanthropy

Open Philanthropy is a philanthropic funder and advisor; our mission is to help others as much as we can with the resources available to us. We stress openness to many possibilities and have chosen our focus areas based on importance, neglectedness, and tractability. In addition to Science and Global Health R&D, our current giving areas include Navigating Transformative Artificial Intelligence, Global Health and Development, Global Public Health Policy, Farm Animal Welfare, and Biosecurity and Pandemic Preparedness. In 2024, we recommended $650 million to high-impact causes, and we’ve recommended over $4.5 billion in grants since our formation.

About the team

The Science and Global Health R&D team supports transformational scientific discovery and the development of new vaccines, drugs, diagnostics, and other tools to improve global health outcomes. We are particularly interested in R&D efforts targeting diseases with a large global health burden, as well as initiatives to make these products more affordable and accessible worldwide.

Our team awards $100 million+ annually. We plan to expand our team in 2026, and are looking for people excited to be part of that growth.

About the role

We are seeking multiple (up to three) Senior Program Associates to support our grantmaking aimed at improving global health through scientific research and R&D. This role will report to either Katharine Collins, Heather Youngs, or Ray Kennedy, depending on fit and expertise.

Senior Program Associates (SPAs) work closely with grantmakers, interact with grantees, and are responsible for a wide variety of research and analysis activities that support our grantmaking strategy, as well as administrative and operational duties to support grantmaking. We also expect that SPAs can help define and independently manage some projects. We expect all team members to adhere to our operating values of ownership, openness, calibration, and inclusiveness.

SPA responsibilities may include:

• Research: Scoping and conducting research projects, literature reviews, and expert interviews to support grantmaking, grantmaking strategy, and decision-making.

• Grant investigation support: Contributing directly to grant investigations, with tasks such as evaluating the potential impact of grants, including impact calculations; and researching and drafting detailed grant recommendations for funding decisions.

• Portfolio management: Maintaining relationships with grantees, participating in check-in calls, assessing the progress of funded projects, contributing to planning and strategy documents.

• Organizational and administrative support: Managing grant databases, tracking opportunities, coordinating and managing consultants, and arranging meetings.

• Communications and external engagement: Attending conferences, as well as preparing written materials and presentations to update management, donors, and other stakeholders on team activities, grantee progress, and key strategic developments.

This job description is intentionally broad and covers several potential areas of focus. While we expect each hire to support each of the activities above to some extent, how they allocate their time will depend on how their interests and aptitudes overlap with team priorities.

Who we’re looking for

We are looking for people who combine scientific understanding, analytical rigor, and strong judgment with curiosity about how global health innovations move from research to real-world impact.

The ideal candidate for these positions will possess many of the skills and experiences described below. However, there is no such thing as a “perfect” candidate; if you are on the fence about applying because you are unsure whether you are qualified, we strongly encourage you to apply. You do not need to have previous experience in grantmaking to apply.

You might be a great fit if you have:

• Experience relevant to Science and Global Health R&D, e.g. in biomedical research, clinical development, implementation research, public health, health tech, consulting, early-, mid-, or late-stage R&D, or pharmaceutical/biotechnology sectors.

  • Experience in low- and middle-income countries is a bonus but not required.

• An advanced degree (e.g. master's or Ph.D.) in biology, medicine, or a related global health field, and the ability to think broadly across many topics in biomedical science and translation.

  • We anticipate that at least one of our hires will hold an advanced degree, but this may not be required for all roles.

• Outstanding research and critical thinking skills, in addition to critically reading and summarizing primary literature, and the ability to conduct high-quality informational interviews with field experts.

• Excellent judgment, with the ability to focus on the most decision-relevant information.

• Strong analytical and quantitative skills, including the ability to:

  • Think in probabilistic terms.

  • Critically evaluate assessments by others when forming your decisions.

  • Have comfort when reasoning about uncertainty.

  • Conduct cost-effectiveness and expected value calculations.

  • Learn quickly and curiously about new technical areas.

• Excellent written and oral communication skills, particularly the ability to reason transparently, and clearly and concisely communicate complex information.

• Ability to travel periodically (e.g. for occasional conferences and team gatherings).

• Strong interpersonal skills for engaging with grantees, researchers, and partners from diverse cultural and institutional contexts.

• Comfort with hits-based giving — funding projects that may have a low probability of success but a large potential upside.

• Ability to overlap with U.K. and U.S. Pacific Time several hours per week for team and grantee calls.

We typically see Senior Program Associates as having at least 4 years of relevant experience, which includes work experience or time spent in an advanced degree (e.g. master's or Ph.D.).

We are open to considering a more senior version of this role for candidates with substantially more relevant experience. If you believe your background and expertise align strongly with this work, we encourage you to apply.

Application Process and Timeline

Deadline to apply: December 4th, 2025, 11:59 p.m. Pacific Time.

Process:

• Submit one application for all roles.

• Selected candidates will be invited to complete a paid work test in December.

• Those shortlisted will be invited to initial remote interviews.

• Finally, we’ll conduct final interviews along with reference checks.

• We expect to make offers in February.

Start date: We’d like a candidate to start as soon as possible after receiving an offer, but have flexibility on the exact date.

We aren’t able to provide feedback during the early stages of the process, including work tests, due to capacity; however, all applications will be carefully reviewed by our team. Thank you for your understanding.

Role details & benefits

• Compensation: The baseline compensation for this role is $126,233.59, which would be distributed as a base salary of $109,768.34 and an unconditional 401(k) grant of $16,465.25 for U.S. hires.

  • All compensation will be distributed in the form of take-home salary for internationally based hires.

• Time zones and location: You can work remotely in this role. While much of our team is based in the U.S. and U.K., we are open to hires outside the U.S. who can overlap with U.K. and U.S. Pacific Coast working hours for team and grantee calls a few times a week.

  • 5-10 hours/week overlap with the U.K. or U.S. PT

  • 2-4 hours/week overlap with US PT for weekly team calls

    • Our team meeting currently takes place every Wednesday from 8:30 to 10 AM PST / 4:30 to 6:00 PM BST.

  • We are happy to consider candidates based outside of the U.S., and to consider sponsoring U.S. work authorization. However, we don’t control who is and isn’t eligible for a visa and can’t guarantee visa approval.

• Benefits: Our benefits package includes:

  • Excellent health insurance (we cover 100% of premiums within the U.S. for you and any eligible dependents) and an employer-funded Health Reimbursement Arrangement for certain other personal health expenses.

  • Dental, vision, and life insurance for you and your family

  • Four weeks of PTO recommended per year

  • Four months of fully paid family leave

  • A generous and flexible expense policy — we encourage staff to expense the ergonomic equipment, software, and other services that they need to stay healthy and productive

  • A continual learning policy that encourages staff to spend time on professional development, with related expenses covered.

  • Support for remote work — we’ll cover a remote workspace outside your home if you need one, or connect you with an Open Phil coworking hub in your city

  • We can’t always provide every benefit we offer U.S. staff to international hires, but we’re working on it (and will usually provide cash equivalents of any benefits we can’t offer in your country)

• Note: U.S.-based program staff are typically employed by Open Philanthropy Project LLC, which is not a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt organization. As such, this role is unlikely to be eligible for public service loan forgiveness programs.

We aim to employ people with many different experiences, perspectives, and backgrounds who share our passion for accomplishing as much good as we can. We are committed to creating an environment where all employees have the opportunity to succeed, and we do not discriminate based on race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, or any other legally protected status.

If you need assistance or an accommodation due to a disability, or have any other questions about applying, please contact jobs@openphilanthropy.org.

We may use AI to assist in the initial screening of applications, but every application is carefully reviewed by a human before any decisions are made.

You can opt out of AI being used on your application by emailing jobs@openphilanthropy.org to let a member of the team know. Opting out will not impact your application.