La Communidad
by Lango Deen
ldeen@ccgmag.com
STEM STARS ON THE RISE INTERNSHIPS OPEN DOORS TO YOUR FUTURE CAREER
La Communidad celebrates three new professionals, and shows how they landed internships and launched careers with STEM organizations that are honored, year after year, in the Most Admired Employers for Minority Professionals list. HE&IT magazine shares excerpts from three interviews with Cristina Muñoz-Ojeda, Carlos Cutié, and Esteban D. Maradona.
Cristina Muñoz-Ojeda is a chemical engineering senior at the University of Puerto Rico, Mayaguez Campus. She has participated in three summer internships; one with the Nuclear Regulatory Commission and two with United Technologies Corpo- ration, UTC Power. Recently, she worked in Dow Chemical’s co-op program in the fall of 2010.
HE&IT: What attracted you to Dow Chemical? Cristina Muñoz-Ojeda: I was interested in working in a chemical plant and receiving hands-on experience in manufacturing, engineering, and leadership roles. I con- sidered Dow a challenge that would give me a different view of what I perceived a chemical engineer to be.
Carlos Cutié
HE&IT: Are experiential education programs important? Cristina Muñoz-Ojeda: I highly recommend [that] every student do an internship or co-op with a company of their interest. It is a tremendous learning experience that helps you make decisions on the likes and dislikes of your future profession. Dow gave me the opportunity to see how products are made, observe the process and even optimize the system for future operations. I was also able to see various facilities inside the chemical plant and network with chemical engineers on the day-to-day aspects of their job. This experience was wonderful, as I was able to practice longer, more technical projects and take part in a manufacturing and engineering role.
HE&IT: Are you in a Dow Chemical college-entry program? Cristina Muñoz-Ojeda: Following my assignment with Dow, I have returned to Puerto Rico to continue my collegiate studies. Upon completion of my Bachelor of Science degree in chemical engineering, I look forward to pursuing full-time employment with Dow.
HE&IT: Does Dow Chemical provide help with transition from school to work? Cristina Muñoz-Ojeda: Dow offers a variety of transition benefits and incentives for co-ops, interns and entry-level employees. For my assignment to Louisiana [Saint Charles Operations in Hahnville], Dow offered and coordinated fully furnished student housing in a great location. I also received a relocation stipend based on the mileage difference from the internship location to my college. This made my transi- tion from Puerto Rico much easier and stress-free. Dow even matched me with a roommate who was willing to carpool to and from work and assigned me a mentor who guided me through the challenges and counseled me on ways to continuously improve my skill sets.
Esteban D. Maradona
HE&IT: How would you describe the Dow Chemical culture? Cristina Muñoz-Ojeda: I consider the Dow Chemical culture to be collaborative [and] willing to teach [while exposing] their employees to cross-disciplinary experi-
10 HISPANIC ENGINEER & Information Technology | 2011
www.hispanicengineer.com
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