The Griffon News

By Bastian Huck

Vaccine research in one of the most advanced labs of the world or human resource development in one of the world’s top international employers is not the usual internship or part-time job most Missouri Western students think of landing. But there are awesome possibilities around that can jumpstart careers no matter what a student is majoring in.

“While internships are mostly undertaken by liberal arts and business majors, especially life science majors should make use of the wide spectrum of possibilities offered in the St. Joseph and Kansas City area,” said Linda Garlinger, Western’s director of the Career Development Center.

Three Western biology graduates – Karen Skroh, Jennifer Kempker and Jason Headding – have done an internship in biology within the last couple of years and not only experienced a rewarding internship, but they also now have a job at Boehringer Ingelheim.

Since the Ingelheim site in St. Joseph is the headquarters rather than a branch office, there are diverse opportunities for internships from information technology, accounting and human resources to biotech research.

An internship can be more valuable than expected said Kathrin Carpenter, a Western business major, who was an intern until recently at the department of human resources at Boehringer Ingelheim.

“When you first start your internship you have certain expectations,” Carpenter said. “I discovered there are not just lower tasks to do. I have learned a lot of things. Since the first day here, I appreciate every opportunity I have been given; I am doing specific tasks of which I thought an intern would never be able and allowed to do.”

Meanwhile, Carpenter has been hired as a full-time employee in the human resource department of Boehringer Ingelheim.

“Internship possibilities within Boehringer Ingelheim are widespread,” said Phil Hayes, vice president of the U.S. research and development group of Boehringer Ingelheim. “We do not only have interns in the field of life science or vaccine research, but also in other fields, for example, business and finance.”

The company generally is open to engage students who apply for a specific department that is linked with their field of study, said Dan Nowalk, executive director of human resources at Boehringer Ingelheim.

“We love the opportunity to bring the young people in,” Nowalk said. “We like to see our interns launch something in a productive working environment.”

Nowalk said the objective of internships at Boehringer Ingelheim is to train and give the students the possibility to excel and hopefully start a successful career at Boehringer Ingelheim after graduation.

“The reputation of Missouri Western providing good quality education, as well as individuals with good work ethics and sound skills, makes it very easy to continue to work together with the university,” Nowalk said.

The company also contacts the respective faculty at Western whenever there is an internship place available. The faculty helps students to integrate the internship in a one credit hour internship study program. The students have to write a weekly log and a final paper in order to receive credit.

“There are various, very specific tasks that we expect an intern to work on,” said Axel Neubauer, veterinarian and vaccine researcher at Boehringer Ingelheim. “Therefore, we invest a lot of time in an intern and try to train the intern very well.”

Neubauer said that usually interns profit so much from their time at the company that writing their final paper for class is almost an easy task.

“The students will have the opportunity to participate in the actual research process and take over their own responsibility for their work according to their current knowledge and skill level,” Neubauer said. “I think that the most interesting thing for the students is that they have the chance to work at the forefront of research.”

Associate professor of biology and internship coordinator at Western’s department of biology Jason Baker advises the life science students who are interested in doing an internship. He is also the industry’s primary contact for internship offerings.

“The best way to do an internship is when you can combine it with the content of your studies,” Baker said. “Having already gained practical research skills in vaccine research at a leading company like Boehringer Ingelheim can really push career opportunities right after graduation.”

Baker said the usual duration is four months or one academic semester.

“For life science internships, potential candidates should be in their junior or senior year, preferably with emphasis in microbiology,” Baker said.

Western professor of biology Todd Eckdahl also supports and advises students when applying for or doing an internship in biology.

“I think it is extremely important to continue to support and animate students to do an internship,” Eckdahl said. “As well, it is important that the internship is conducted in a way that it provides mutual benefit to the student, the university and the hosting company.”

Eckdahl said internships also have the function for the student to figure out what kind of job to search for after graduation or maybe inspire the student to obtain a master’s degree.

Even though it is not required to do an internship in biology, mainly because of the fact that there are not many research internship vacancies in this industry and companies must have a high grade of trust in an intern since research data is confidential, there are good chances to apply because there are not many
students who actually do it.

“This does not mean that biology graduates who did not do an internship are lacking any knowledge or skills, which might be a difference compared to other disciplines,” Baker said. “Studying biology does not mean to study theory only.” Baker said there is practical lab work included to make sure that the
students obtain the skills required by the industry.

“I really encourage students, and not only the ones with outstanding grades, to use all possibilities to apply since I think it is a valuable experience, and maybe there is the opportunity to get hired after an internship,” Baker said. Baker regularly posts information concerning internships.

“Boehringer Ingelheim is a top opportunity for our students,” Baker said, “but of course, there are as well other biotech companies with different specializations than Boehringer Ingelheim located in the region.”

An example is one of Baker’s students, currently doing an internship with Central Solutions, which is in the field of liquid chemicals, in Kansas City.

Students can get information about the various internship possibilities and different specializations of the region’s companies at the career development center’s student employment office, the Western Institute and the faculty of biology.

“Setting the course for a professional career does not have to wait till graduation,” Garlinger said. “Already while studying, Western’s students can get to know a leading employer and can gain invaluable field experience. Employers are not only looking for a degree, they also look for a proof of practical skills,
which an internship provides.”

For information about how to apply visit www.missouriwestern.edu/studentemployment or contact your respective faculty.