Kristin Sahyouni

Graduation Year:  2003
Degree(s):  BS Industrial & Systems Engineering, MS Industrial Engineering & Management Sciences (Northwestern University), PhD Industrial Engineering & Management Sciences (Northwestern University)
Current Position:  Associate, McKinsey & Company

What traits do you look for or value in new employees?
Hard-working, structured thinking, ability to work in groups and independently, and creativity are all very important.

What advice do you have for future women engineers?
Reach out to faculty, your peers at school, and colleagues in industry -- learn as much as you can from everyone! Join support groups for women in engineering. Get an engineering internship as quickly as you can to learn how engineering applies in the real world. Get involved with undergraduate research if at all possible.  

Chelsea Miller

Graduation Year:  2008
Degree(s):  BS Chemical Engineering
Current Position:  Engineering Professional Development Program, Abbott Laboratories

What experiences as an undergraduate allowed you to build the skill set needed to succeed in your career?
Being able to work on a team, collaborate, and listen to others. Learning interpersonal skills that help me relate with others at work. Core engineering classes, such as fluid dynamics and mass transfer that constantly pop up in every engineering work situation.

How are you using your degree today?
I work in an engineering development program at Abbott Laboratories. I rotate through four different work locations and jobs, and each has utilized a different aspect of my degree. I used a lot of my physics in a facilities design position; I used reactor design and fluid dynamics as an equipment engineer. Now I use my engineering economics coursework as a supply planner. I think that the degree gave me the basis for all of these positions and gave me the framework to build real industry experiences off of my school work.