Purdue University students visited Ireland on a study abroad spring break trip, hosted by leading biopharma companies and researchers at University College Dublin.

Old gold and black mixed with a little green when 18 students from Purdue University's Colleges of Engineering, Pharmacy and Science visited the Emerald Isle on a spring break study abroad trip hosted by leading biopharma companies and researchers at University College Dublin.

The group was led by Alina Alexeenko, associate dean for undergraduate education and professor of chemical engineering and aeronautical and astronautical engineering, and Cristina Farmus, vice president of special projects at Purdue. Students got hands-on training in Dublin on disposable technologies at the National Institute for Bioprocessing Research and Training (NIBRT), gleaned the future of accelerated development of advanced biotherapeutics at APC / VLE Therapeutics, learned about the state-of-the-art aseptic manufacturing with large-scale lyophilization capability at Amgen Dún Laoghaire, saw new bulk drug substance manufacturing for breakthrough cancer immunotherapies at Merck Biotech Dublin, and toured chemical engineering labs and participated in a masterclass on bioprocess modeling at the University College Dublin.

The trip began with training and tours at the National Institute for Bioprocessing Research and Technology (NIBRT). Paul McCabe, chief operating officer at VLE Therapeutics, said in a post, “What a pleasure it was to welcome the students from Purdue University to NIBRT during the trip. NIBRT has strong research and training partnerships with Purdue.”

Associate Director of Global Education Joe Tort, who accompanied the group, said it was also an opportunity to expand partnerships with these companies and universities like University College Dublin and University of Galway.

Annelise Nauman, a junior studying biological engineering with a concentration in cellular and biomolecular engineering and minoring in biotechnology and global engineering studies, has experienced this firsthand. As vice president of Growth for Global Engineering Alliance for Research and Education (GEARE), Purdue's premier international work experience program, she spent a semester at University College Dublin. When she returns this summer, it will be as a bioprocess engineering intern at the Dunboyne site for MSD (known as Merck in the United States).

“It's very exciting to get the chance to learn from Ireland’s rapidly growing pharmaceutical industry, and to be able to develop intercultural communication skills alongside engineering experiences,” Nauman said. “Understanding how to operate in a global engineering environment is a very valuable career asset, and I hope to further my abilities to adapt to different cultures and work with people from many different backgrounds. I am very eager to see how my internship in Ireland differs from my domestic internship, despite them both being for the same company, and to compare and contrast ways of life between different countries.”

In the future, she hopes to develop biological products and treatments to aid people in their medical and recovery journeys.

The trip was an opportunity to expand partnerships.