Operations Intern

Name: Jack S. Myers
Major: Dairy Science and International Agriculture
Year: Senior
Hometown/State: Fowler, Michigan
Company/Organization: Agropur, U.S Operations
Title: Operations Intern
Location: Weyauwega and Luxemburg, Wisconsin.

Describe your internship responsibilities:  
As an operations intern, I was exposed to a wide variety of experiences and activities within the company. Ranging from process improvement projects, spending time with a field representative, and working alongside plant operators on various tasks. The internship was project-focused, with projects ranging from work a microfiltration recalibration project on whey from the cheese plant to looking at protein concentrations as the travel through the plant, along with a wide variety of other smaller leaning manufacturing projects.

What did you enjoy most about this internship?
Probably one of my favorite aspects of the internship that I enjoyed was getting to use problem solving skills to solve real world problems in the cheese plant, and then find ways to correct any problems or implement new management practices to improve the cheese make process. In addition, I enjoyed seeing how management decisions made on the dairy farm can have an impact on the cheese leaving the factory. Lastly, another one of the other aspects I enjoyed was always getting to experience something different each day!

How has this experience impacted your future career plans?
This internship has greatly help to increase my knowledge and my interest in the dairy processing industry, while allowing me to bridge dairy production and dairy processing, which is a passion. In addition, it made me want to consider graduate school after completing my undergrad or finding work with a dairy processor.

What resources did you utilize to obtain this internship?
To obtain the internship, I spoke with Agropur at their booth at the CAL’s career fair. In addition, I attended a seminar they held on campus the evening following the career fair. The next day, I interviewed, followed up by a second interview a week and a half later, and by mid-October I already had my summer internship lined up!

What advice would you offer to other students seeking similar internships?
One of the biggest pieces of advice I would give to fellow students seeking a similar internship is to just always be open to what dairy processing companies have to offer. I was hesitant to accept the internship offer because it was made so early, but I just took a leap of faith and stayed open minded and absolutely loved it in the end!