News Article -- August 22, 2008

DVC 2008 Interns Gain Memories Not to be Forgotten

While many college students worked at restaurants or community pools or lounged around, a group of seven spent the 2008 summer gaining professional experience at DynPort Vaccine Company (DVC) in Frederick, MD.

These students were involved with auditing training records, assisting with project management, revising and re-formatting Standard Operating Procedures, completing clinical project work, designing marketing materials and assembling new business proposals.

DVC’s summer interns were:

• Stephen Bearman, Project Management Intern, Hood College
• Amber Bruce, Document Control Intern, College of William and Mary
• Nary Kim, Manufacturing, Testing and Technical Services Intern, James Madison University
• Ryne Koucouthakis, Clinical Intern, George Washington University
• Kristin O’Toole, New Business and Communications Intern, McDaniel College
• Bryce Selby, Manufacturing, Testing and Technical Services Intern, Towson University
• Chelsey Wood, Document Control Intern, Johns Hopkins University

Six of the interns are pursuing science / health degrees, while one is pursuing a communication degree. The 2008 summer interns met each other and their supervisors jointly for the first time at a May 28, 2008 Intern Orientation Luncheon.  As part of the internship program, DVC held several workshops that provided an opportunity to gain an understanding of DVC and the biotech industry. The workshops included a crash course on regulatory affairs, GXP basics, government contracting 101, presentation/public speaking skills, business writing, nonclinical research basics and a career panel for the grads. DVC’s parent company CSC also offered several courses and events to the interns at its headquarters in Falls Church.

Each of the DVC interns gained valuable life and business experience this summer, as most said this was their first professional job. In addition to learning more about the biotechnology business, the interns gained essential professional experience, saying they found the experience to be rewarding and a good introduction to the professional world. Bryce Selby said that this summer was an “eye opener” to the real world.

On July 25, 2008, DVC recognized the seven interns with a special farewell luncheon hosted by DVC President Dr. Robert V. House. The interns were each presented with a certificate signed by Dr. House and their supervisors and a “college survival kit” filled with gift cards, office supplies, snacks and other goodies.

When asked abouttheir experience this summer, several interns noted that they were pleasantly surprised by their experiences. Stephen Bearman commented, “I was the only one of my friends with a corporate job this summer, and I loved coming to work every day.” As a returning intern, Kristin O’Toole noted, “Things have changed a lot this year. I’m more independent with my tasks; I like that [my supervisor] trusts me to do my work.”

On July 30, 2008, DVC intern managers and members of the senior management team had the pleasure of attending a presentation session given by the interns on what they learned this summer. This was an entertaining depiction of what life has been like for our interns, and provided them the opportunity to gain public speaking experience. During these presentations, interns discussed projects they had worked on and their accomplishments. The interns also illustrated how the job compared to their original expectations—all favorable—and what lessons they would take with them. A particularly entertaining part of this summer’s program was the “Intern Social” planned exclusively by the interns for the entire company; the event offered staff a chance to “be in college again,” with pizza and video games including Wii and Guitar Hero.

The interns come away from this year’s experience with a vast amount of knowledge related to the industry and the value of hard work. Amber Bruce said, “As I leave here and return to life at William and Mary I will take with me a wealth of knowledge, not just about the vaccine industry but also about professionalism and the value of hard work. I am positive that my internship at DVC will help push me to succeed no matter which path I choose.”

DVC plans to continue its intern program in 2009. For further information or to apply, check the DVC Web site in early 2009 for details, or register for our intern e-mail list and we'll contact you when more information is available.

Learn More:

Register for DVC intern program notifications

Learn more about CSC NPS University Relations (on-campus recruiting and events)

Read more about internships at DVC