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Summer Internship Program

Summer Internship Program

Chemistry majors interested in internship opportunities are asked to submit an application packet as a single PDF file to chemistry.head@oregonstate.edu which includes a current resume and cover letter that contains:

  • which company or companies they are interested in
  • their career aspirations after graduation
  • any prior laboratory experience.

Potential funding opportunities exist to support the internship program through OSU. Additionally, financial support may be possible through corporate sponsor of internship. Students may also earn CH 410 - Internship credits for successful completion of this program. For full consideration, application packet must be received by April 4th.

The David T Wong Chemistry Research Internship Fund provides internship opportunities for chemistry students. David Wong received his B.S. in Chemistry at Seattle Pacific University in 1961, M.S. in Biochemistry from Oregon State University in 1964 and Ph.D. in Biochemistry from OHSU in 1966. After post-doctoral training at the Johnson Research Foundation, he joined the Lilly Research Laboratories as a senior biochemist in January 1968 and retired at the rank of Lilly Research Fellow in 2000. In 1972, Wong proposed that synaptic uptake of serotonin in brain tissues could serve as a biochemical target for discovery of antidepressant agents. The same year, Wong and his colleagues identified a selective inhibitor of serotonin uptake, fluoxetine, which was approved as an antidepressant drug better known as Prozac by the FDA in 1987. He was also involved in the discovery and development of atomexetine, known as Strattera, approved for the treatment of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder in 2002, and duloxetine known as Cymbalta approved for treatment of depression in 2004.


Interns will be expected to submit a one-page summary within two (2) weeks of completion of their internship about their experience. (This document must be approved by the sponsoring company for public dissemination.)

A list of potential industrial opportunities are provided below:

(If you are a company looking for interns and would like to be added to this list, please email your name, location, web address and a brief company description to (chemistry.head@oregonstate.edu)


Agere Pharmaceuticals, Inc.

Bend, OR

Agere is a contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) providing pre-clinical formulation development through clinical-stage cGMP manufacturing services for drug products. We specialize in improving the oral bioavailability of BCS II – IV compounds through solubilization expertise.


Amorphyx

Corvallis, OR

Amorphyx is an innovator at the intersection of materials science and electronics for the display market. The company was founded in 2012 to commercialize advanced amorphous metal thin-film technology licensed from Oregon State University. Amorphyx is leveraging its expertise in amorphous metals and the creation of high-quality thin films to design processes that simplify liquid crystal display backplane manufacturing, redefining the cost of LCDs while enabling advances in flexible displays and the integration of touch functionality into the backplane.


Bend Research

Bend, OR

Bend Research develops formulations for pharmaceutical products. Our chemists study formulation performance, physical properties, and chemical stability using a range of techniques including HPLC, x-ray diffraction, calorimetry, NMR, and electron microscopy. Chemistry interns will work on projects in this fast-paced environment, assisting in the development, understanding, and scale-up of pharmaceutical formulations.


Hewlett Packard

Corvallis, OR

Paper studies - State-of-the-art processing and construction of ceramic materials. We will investigate and develop a summary report (~ 80 pages) which describes current state-of-the-art materials and processing methods associated with ceramics and ceramic composites. We will identify and document key researchers, institutions and companies associated with ceramic materials and process methods/tooling development. In the end we will explore and describe possible development/product opportunities within this space.

We need a highly talented self-motivated individual who will work with a small team, consisting of 2 principal scientists and 2 engineers, over the course of the internship. This activity is associated with a strategic R&D interest here at HP.


Inpria

Corvallis, OR

Inpria, an OSU Department of Chemistry spin-off, develops high- resolution photoresists for the semiconductor industry. We are seeking an exceptional and highly motivated undergraduate intern for Summer 2014 to perform additional characterization of our materials. Scope of the work will include, but not be limited to, thin film process development and characterization of photoresist thin films via Raman & FTIR spectroscopy as a function of exposure dose and bake temperature. A successful candidate will gain experience in basic laboratory practices in an industrial lab, thin film processing techniques, Raman/FTIR spectroscopy, and SEM operations in the EM Lab at the Linus Pauling Science Center. Other duties may include solution preparation, thin film processing for other coating projects, and other analytical techniques (tbd). The ideal candidate will have already demonstrated the ability to work safely in laboratory environments, work effectively in teams, communicate effectively (written and oral), and achieve goals with minimum direct supervision.


Lacamas Labs

Portland, OR

Lacamas Laboratories is a Contract Manufacturing Organization specializing in chemical process development and scale up. The intern will work in the R&D laboratory front running chemical processes and performing control experiments and stress tests to underpin process robustness and consistency. The intern will also develop an appreciation and understanding of the physical factors and engineering concepts involved in safely transposing a lab process to large scale plant operation.


Microflow CVO

Corvallis, OR

MFCVO would be interested in an undergraduate intern to work on chemical syntheses using our microreactor system. We are currently sponsoring a ChE senior project to make copper nanoparticles, and would likely have the intern continue this work. The scope of work would include running experiments using the reactor system, analyzing results using the SEM in the EM facility (MFCVO would pay for training on the SEM), and designing the next round of experiments.


Online Chem Labs

Corvallis, OR

Online Labs creates virtual chemistry labs for high school and college chemistry students. We have a software framework that includes common lab instruments and tools and allows students to interact -- to combine acquired data to solve bigger problems. We are looking for chemistry or science students with significant lab and instructional experience (and great communication and teamwork skills) who can help us translate chemistry lab learning experiences into a virtual environment.


Organic Consultants

Eugene, OR

Organic Consultants, Inc. is a Contract Research Organization founded in 1980. Over these years, we have developed a reputation as a reliable and experienced partner in the pharmaceutical and specialty chemical industry.Interns will be involved inmanufacturing roughly a dozen compounds each with 1-4 synthetic steps. The procedures are written in a laboratory notebook and are not optimized. Under guidance from a senior chemist, the intern chemist would synthesize these materials on several grams scale with a goal of optimizing the process. Once the process is established in a laboratory notebook, Standard Operating Procedures (SOP’s) would be written for future use. The student would receive hands-on synthetic organic chemistry experience and experience using instrumentation for analysis including HPLC, NMR, IR, and UV-Vis.


Polaris Battery Labs, LLC

Beaverton, OR

Polaris provides processing services to accelerate the optimization of new “recipes” for lithium ion battery developers & OEM's. Interns will get exposure to all aspects of building sample batteries for internal evaluations and for customers (mix, coat, calendar, assembly, electrolyte fill and test). Additionally, interns will also be involved in process studies and experiments and will assist us in developing new chemistries.


Valliscor, LLC

Corvallis, OR

Valliscor is looking for highly motivated chemistry majors interested in learning about chemical manufacturing processes and reaction scale-up.Valliscor exploits the synergy between industrial know-how and academic innovation to provide access to high-value organic building blocks for the pharmaceutical, biotech and agrochemical industries.