R&D Intern – Laboratory Role (Summer 2026)

At Elanco (NYSE: ELAN) – it all starts with animals!

As a global leader in animal health, we are dedicated to innovation and delivering products and services to prevent and treat disease in farm animals and pets. We’re driven by our vision of ‘Food and Companionship Enriching Life’ and our approach to sustainability – the Elanco Healthy Purpose™ – to advance the health of animals, people, the planet and our enterprise.

At Elanco, we pride ourselves on fostering a diverse and inclusive work environment. We believe that diversity is the driving force behind innovation, creativity, and overall business success. Here, you’ll be part of a company that values and champions new ways of thinking, work with dynamic individuals, and acquire new skills and experiences that will propel your career to new heights.

Making animals’ lives better makes life better – join our team today!

Your Role: R&D Intern – Laboratory Role  

As an R&D Intern working in Elanco’s labs, you will be executing hands on experiments in areas such as chemistry and analytics, pharmaceutical science, cell culture, molecular biology, protein sciences, or immunology to deliver on projects aimed at directly impacting our Research and Development pipelines.  

Your Responsibilities:  

• Executing experiments in an R&D lab and demonstrating an understanding of resulting data 

• Performing independent laboratory work 

• Managing regular check-ins and reporting/presenting work to your direct supervisor  

• Providing recommendations on experiment, instrumentation, or process improvements  

• Working within cross-functional teams to implement project outcomes 

What You Need to Succeed (minimum qualifications): 

• Education: Currently enrolled in a STEM field such as chemistry, biology, biochemistry, chemical engineering, pharmaceutical science, molecular biology, animal science, or other related fields 

• Degree: This role is open to students pursuing a Bachelor’s, Master’s, PhD, or professional degree (e.g., DVM, PharmD, etc.) 

• General experience with hands-on experiments through coursework or independent research 

• Microsoft PowerPoint and Excel experience 

• Scientific curiosity and a desire to innovate 

• Highly self-motivated, demonstrated learning agility, and critical thinking  

What will give you a competitive edge (preferred qualifications): 

• One semester or more of undergraduate or graduate research experience in a STEM lab 

• Experience working with statistical software or data management tools 

• Ability to work exceptionally well independently and with minimal supervision 

• Have an interest in wanting to make a difference for pets, sustainability, veterinary medicine, or data-driven approaches 

• Strong comm