Sr Scientist I, Analytical R&D, Chromatography
Posted Aug 20, 2026 · We last checked this listing on Oct 6, 2026
Likely interview questions for this role
Written from this job description, not a generic list. Each one notes what the interviewer is really checking.
About your past
Tell me about a separation problem you solved that other people had given up on.
What they are checking: Technical depth demonstrated through a hard case.
The posting asks you to resolve key project hurdles within project timelines. Tell me about a time the timeline forced a compromise. What did you protect?
What they are checking: What they refuse to give up when the schedule squeezes.
This role includes publishing in peer-reviewed journals and presenting at conferences. What would you want to publish from work like this?
What they are checking: Whether the publication expectation is something they actually want.
AbbVie has also posted a combined Scientist II and Senior Scientist I requisition in Analytical Research and Development. This one is specifically Senior Scientist I in the chromatography screening lab at North Chicago. What do you want to know about how the screening lab's priorities are set?
What they are checking: Distinguishing this seat from its sibling and probing how work arrives.
What would you do
The lab serves a diverse set of internal customers. How do you handle two project teams who both want their screen first?
What they are checking: Prioritization in a service laboratory.
How do you present a technical result to a project team who only want to know whether they can move forward?
What they are checking: Translating a screen into a decision.
About the work
This is a high-throughput method screening laboratory inside a chromatography center of excellence. Walk me through how you screen conditions efficiently rather than exhaustively.
What they are checking: Screening strategy, which is the whole point of a high-throughput lab.
How do you decide when a screening hit is worth handing off for full method development?
What they are checking: The judgment call that determines this lab's output.
How do you document a screening campaign so someone can build on it two years later?
What they are checking: Knowledge capture in a lab whose value is cumulative.
What automation or software has genuinely changed how you screen, and what is still done by hand?
What they are checking: Honest view of where high-throughput work actually is.
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Practice this out loudThe full job description
As published by AbbVie.