Lauren Love’s journey at Biogen began as a leap into the unknown. After graduating from North Carolina Central University (NCCU) with a focus on education, she unexpectedly found herself in the biotechnology field. While her previous work experience was primarily within the traditional education field, at Biogen Lauren quickly discovered a life-changing opportunity. She worked on meaningful projects, explored cutting-edge technologies and found her place in an organization that prioritizes learning, inclusivity and innovation.
Motivated by her academic advisor’s encouragement to explore business, she stepped out of her comfort zone and applied to Biogen’s student co-op program, which has an established Historically Black College and University (HBCU) recruitment partnership with NCCU. Lauren got the job working with the Patient Services Training team in North Carolina to identify and address learning needs in the business.
“Coming from a background outside of biotech, I definitely felt like I had some imposter syndrome at first,” explained Lauren. “But people at Biogen were approachable and really willing to help me. Within a short time, I began to feel confident in what I brought to the team.”
Having Real-World Impact
With the support of her manager, Talonda Broadnax, a learning and development leader on the Biogen Patient Services team, Lauren transitioned smoothly from a traditional education setting to the biotech industry. Her responsibilities quickly extended beyond the typical co-op tasks. “The experience was much more hands-on than other intern and co-op experiences I’ve had. I was supported, but Talonda gave me a lot of autonomy and allowed me to take ownership of whole workstreams.”
She independently led a reimbursement assessment project, analyzing performance gaps and major skill requirements across the department. Bringing her academic training in instructional design, the resulting work had tangible benefits for the business. Lauren not only did the work, but she also had the opportunity to present her findings to a whole room of people leaders.
“Lauren knocked it out of the park,” Talonda said. “She did interviews, she led roundtables with learners and she presented her outputs. There was a time after her presentation where I could barely get down a hallway without someone stopping me to say what a fantastic job Lauren did.”
“I’d never done something like that before in the real world, just group projects in school,” Lauren explained. “This really felt like I made a real-world impact.”
Beyond the Day-To-Day
Lauren’s co-op experience hasn’t just been defined by the projects she worked on – it was also shaped by the co-op programming Biogen offers. Through opportunities like professional development sessions, coffee chats, executive talks and Employee Resource Groups, she engaged with colleagues from her team and beyond, learning from their diverse experiences and gaining valuable career advice.
Biogen employees (from left to right) Cayla Wilson, Lauren Love, Talonda Broadnax, Matthew Lee and Samuel Kleine at the Destiny in the Making Tour.
“Biogen University Programs team creates an ecosystem for interns and co-ops to immerse themselves in our culture,” Talonda explained. “There are ongoing programs to connect with employees throughout the organization. Employees want to see each other succeed – and that includes our co-ops.”
Co-ops can attend Biogen events as well. One moment that stood out for Lauren was flying to Boston with her team to participate in the company’s internal “Destiny in the Making” tour. “It was my first time at a conference with the team, and it helped me settle into Biogen and understand the company and my team on a deeper level,” she explained.
Advice for Future Applicants: “Just Do It”
As Lauren wraps up her co-op, she’s glad to have had the new experience and hopes to stay in the instructional design space. At Biogen, she’s also discovered her keen interest in AI and exploring how to tap the latest technologies. She’s looking to bring this orientation to her future career as well, driving AI ethics and governance in education and training.
To the new class of Biogen co-op applicants, Lauren says, “Just do it! I was nervous at first, but Biogen is the perfect place to learn. I couldn’t have asked for a better experience.”
Biogen’s co-op program – and its collaboration with HBCU students specifically – is designed to bridge the gap for early career students, helping them to explore and be exposed to what it’s like to work in the biotech industry before they transition into a full-time role or future career.
“It can really help them spread their wings,” said Talonda, who has now managed three co-ops, two of them from HBCUs. “It’s a win for the Biogen team and a win for the co-op.”