On the Job: Marlene Chmielewski, BS ’26

Pharmaceutical and healthcare business major Marlene Chmielewski, BS ’26, spent her summer as a marketing intern on the rare disease team at Kyowa Kirin, a Japanese-based global speciality pharmaceutical company. There, she focused on spreading the word about the company’s work, as well as bringing awareness to the diseases they fight. 

The Role:

Rare Disease Marketing Intern, Kyowa Kirin, Inc. 

Describe your internship in three words:

Challenging, rewarding and collaborative

The Day-to-Day:

I spent my time working with members of the marketing team across the country. There was a smaller team within the Princeton office that focused on patient marketing, and I worked on the agency side of marketing as well as marketing expansion. The goal is patient advocacy for people with these diseases through education and spreading the word. 

Go-to snack or drink that gets you through the day:

Pure Leaf sweet tea! 

My “I nailed it” moment:

At the end of my internship, I gave a final presentation about what I learned and who I shadowed along the way — everyone on my team was very supportive, and it really solidified my career path in pharmaceuticals. 

Favorite part of your role:

I had the privilege of attending the Human Growth Foundation conference in Chicago. I spent two days there, and it was interesting to see the interactions of different facets of marketing. Before this internship, I didn’t know much about the rare disease space, and this opened my eyes to people who aren’t in a traditional marketing role, but play a huge part in a company. 

Fit check: 

Tips for the next intern:

I found my role through the Career Fair last fall, so I would encourage everyone to attend the Career Fair and network on LinkedIn. There was a student who had the role before me, and I ended up reaching out to him and asking questions, so I felt prepared for the job.