Jack’s journey from safety intern to full-time team member

Jack studied Biomolecular Engineering at Milwaukee School of Engineering and initially joined Sterling in 2022 on an industrial hygiene internship with the safety department based at our Wisconsin, US facility. He remained in this role during the summer of his junior year and was offered an opportunity to transition into a more general environment, health and safety (EHS) internship over the following school year.  

After graduating, Jack returned to Sterling, as a full-time Process Safety Associate Engineer and is currently studying a graduate degree in engineering management. Below, Jack tells us what he learnt during his internship, the opportunities it created, and why he would recommend a Sterling internship.

What did your industrial hygiene internship entail?

I started my industrial hygiene internship by gaining an understanding of the industry, specifically safety considerations within a pharmaceutical development and manufacturing environment, familiarising myself with regulations and guidelines. I was then assigned various projects and worked closely with the safety department’s team members to complete them to the best of my ability. Coming from school, you’re not a subject matter expert and don’t have all the knowledge required yet, so having the team’s help along the way; their understanding and guidance, was brilliant. It really helped to develop my confidence, knowledge and skills.

As I underwent my safety internship, I really enjoyed getting involved with the more environmental side of the role, gaining exposure to things like emissions modelling, environmental sustainability, and learning about environmental social governance (ESG). At a lot of organisations, you would be restricted to only learning about the responsibilities of the role you were recruited in. However, at Sterling, I was able to experience all functional areas, such as engineering, quality and maintenance, benefiting from exposure to anything and everything I expressed an interest in. All the teams were great about letting me sit with and learn from them. The variety and ability to try so many different things was definitely one of the highlights of my time as a Sterling intern.

I held this internship throughout the summer of my junior year, and was offered the opportunity to continue working at Sterling throughout the following school year. This was incredibly beneficial, as there’s such a difference between industry and academia. What you learn at school doesn’t always whole heartedly relate in practice, so having the opportunity to apply what I was learning within a real-life scenario was incredibly beneficial to my learning and development.

You’re now a full-time member of the Sterling team. Can you tell us how that came about after your safety internship?

As mentioned, I initially joined Sterling on a summer industrial hygiene internship, which slowly transitioned into a more general EHS internship as I stayed on during the following school year. During this time, I learnt a lot about the environmental side of the role and started to move more into process safety, which included getting exposure to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) process safety management standards, and assisting in hazard assessments for the site.

Towards the end of the school year, a full-time process safety role came up, and I decided to apply. It was a great fit, and great timing. I was just coming to the end of my engineering degree and had already spent time working as part of the safety team, as well as with other teams across Sterling, really gaining an understanding of the organisation and the role. I had worked well with the team and had shown a willingness and capability to learn about process safety, which lead to being offered the full-time opportunity. I continued my internship until I graduated, and then started the role of Process Safety Associate Engineer almost straight away.

I had always wanted to return to Sterling after graduating, and I think that having interned here made the transition and introduction into a full-time career a lot easier. I already knew the business, and a lot of the people, so it enabled me to move right into the role.

Can you tell us a little more about your role today?

In my current role as Process Safety Associate Engineer I assess processes, identify which failure modes could result in major incidents, and review regulations and frameworks to help avoid these failures and ensure we are compliant. I collaborate regularly with the engineering team to assist in designing systems, and the maintenance team to ensure we’re upholding these systems. I also work with research and development to make sure we are doing our due diligence when new processes are introduced on site to minimise risk, and that the process is safe for those handling the API, as well as those end patients who need it. Currently, I’m going back to school to study a graduate degree in engineering management, which is fully supported by Sterling.

I was also given the opportunity to visit our Cramlington, UK facility to work with the hazard evaluation and process safety team there, learning from their experience and willingness to share and teach. We are working hard across Sterling’s network of facilities to establish global standards and share best practice and resources when it comes to process safety. This visit helped to strengthen relationships across sites and see alternative processes in action.

And finally, why would you recommend a Sterling internship to those interested?

Sterling is very unique. It operates within an incredibly interesting industry, and you will be given the chance to see so much variety. During internships elsewhere, you may not get the same opportunities to observe as much.

At Sterling, everyone is always so willing to share and teach, too. The culture is great and so are the people, they are all so friendly and open, making it a great place to learn and work.

Want to find out more about our 2024 internship programme and apply? Click here.