A female scientist who has been working on the development of a test that diagnoses sepsis is one of the award-winning students in this year’s university placement scheme with Randox Laboratories.

The breakthrough sepsis test is being created by the Randox Molecular Diagnostics team, which Sarah-Louise Morrow from Belfast joined in September. Her innovative work saw her win third place in the Science category at the company’s annual Pinnacle Placement Awards.

Sarah-Louise, a Biochemistry student from Queen’s University Belfast (QUB), said:

“Sepsis is known as the ‘silent killer’, and the faster you can diagnose it the better for the patient. It was so inspiring working with a team here at Randox who are making such valuable contributions to global health and I couldn’t be happier that something I’ve worked on could save lives in the future.”

Now in its 26th year, the Randox placement programme is recognised internationally for providing world-class opportunities for students and graduates – one of the core reasons that the global diagnostics company was established in 1982. Thirty years on, its founder Dr Peter FitzGerald remains as committed as ever to championing new talent and driving innovation.

Between them, this year’s Randox placement students have spearheaded a number of new designs and projects which are being implemented across the company.

Catherine McCooke, a QUB Electrical and Electronic Engineering student designed a new UV radiation exposure detection mechanism; Shannon McKee, a Business Studies student at Ulster University, conducted highly advantageous market research into emerging markets such as Jamaica and Puerto Rico; and Katie Lawther, a QUB Microbiology student introduced a new cellular tissue storage and tracking system.

The title of Randox Placement Student of the Year 2017 went to Robin Walsh, a QUB student from Lisburn who developed a new chemiluminescence signal reagent which is currently being validated and will be shortly released for production.

The 22 year old’s new product delivers significantly positive effects on the chemistry testing carried out by the Randox New Technology team. It increases test output by a factor of three, saving costs and time which ultimately enables the faster delivery of results for patients.

On receiving his award Robin, who studies Chemical Engineering, said;

“The Randox Placement Programme has far exceeded my expectations.  My manager and everyone else in my team have been so supportive and encouraging. I worked on high-level projects I wouldn’t have dreamed possible for a placement student to be involved with.  I have gained so much experience during my time as I have been able to translate what I’ve learnt in university into a true working environment. I’ve no doubt this experience will set me apart from the competition in the future.”

Congratulating Robin and his fellow placement students, Jolene Jamison, Randox Placement Co-Ordinator said;

“Taking part in a meaningful placement scheme is one of the most important things a student can do. The young people who are selected to join our programme are given the opportunity to carry out ground-breaking research and development, often working with pioneering technologies that are exported globally. 

“The scheme is highly valued by the company so it’s important to take time at its end to celebrate our students. We’re very proud of them all – their contributions are going to make a real difference to global health.”

For the first time two of the Randox Placement award winners were selected from the APEX scheme that Randox runs with UU and QUB. This innovative scheme, which enables applicants to submit “video CVS” on social media to showcase their own personalities, includes paid, full-time summer work experience after a student’s first year of studies, a year-long placement, and a full-time job offer upon graduating, should they obtain a 2:1 or above.

Catherine McCooke who won the overall prize in Engineering said:

“After winning a place through the APEX scheme, being awarded the top prize in Engineering at Randox is unbelievable. It’s particularly important to me because I feel very passionately that women should see that there are no barriers to succeeding as an engineer. I’ve worked incredibly hard with some inspiring people, and have felt respected and valued every step of the way.”

The incoming 2017 summer work experience marks the highest intake of APEX students in Randox so far. Anyone interested in applying for the 2018-19 scheme should email recruitment@randox.com.

 

The top students in the Randox Pinnacle Placement Awards 2017 were:

 Science Category

Robin Walsh, Queen’s University Chemical Engineering – New Technology Evaluation Chemistry Team at Randox

Katie Lawther, Queen’s University Microbiology – Monoclonal Development Team at Randox

Sarah-Louise Morrow, Queen’s University Biochemistry – Molecular Diagnostics Team at Randox

 

Engineering Category

Catherine McCooke, Queen’s University Electrical and Electronic Engineering – R&D Engineering Team at Randox

Ruairi Laverty, Queen’s University Mechanical Engineering – R&D Engineering Team at Randox

Adam Fawcett, The Ulster University Electronic Engineering – Engineering Team at Randox

 

Business Category

Shannon McKee, The Ulster University Business – Regional Sales Team at Randox

Martin Conway, The Ulster University Marketing – Marketing Team at Randox

Alastair McIlveen, Queen’s University Computer Science – IT Team at Randox

 

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