About Taylor
Taylor graduated from Rensselaer Polytechnica Institute with both M. Eng and B.S. in Biomedical Engineering. She first joined Haemonetics through the summer R&D internship program, later in 2015 she joined full-time as a Biomedical Research Scientist. Taylor is passionate about soccer having played on an NCAA Division III team and currently serves as an Assistant Coach for the Emerson College Men’s team.
Describe some of the day to day activities of your job as Research Scientist.
I spend most of my time in the lab where I design, set up, and run various experiments. Typically in the mornings I will prepare washing and elution solutions using certain reagents in which I vary the pH to a specified range. I will also make tubing sets for the experiments I will run later in the day. Most tests involve pumping blood products through various types of filters and taking precise aliquots of the post filtration product. Once I have collected all of my samples, I will then run them in a protein analyzer which will give me the varying concentrations of the targeted protein from which I can evaluate the performance of the filter. This data will help me in determining the appropriate changes to the experimental protocol for subsequent tests throughout the week.
How long have you had been working with Haemonetics and how has Haemonetics helped you in your career development since then?
I have been working with Haemonetics for 9 months, and the experience I have gained has been invaluable. I graduated from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in May of 2015 and started as a summer intern working in the research group and continued on to full-time status as a Research Scientist in September. My time thus far at Haemonetics has aided me tremendously in my career development, and it is a great place to start one’s career right out of college. The amount of freedom I have to implement my own ideas into various projects as an entry level scientist has been an immense intrinsic motivator for me, and has challenged me to improve upon my critical thinking and problem solving skills. Haemonetics is a huge supporter of career development and the spreading of knowledge, as seen in their tuition reimbursement program as well as the various educational seminars held monthly. Any skill, class, or information someone wants to gain will be enthusiastically supported at Haemonetics.
How have your career, job responsibilities, and professional training evolved over your time at Haemonetics?
I have certainly taken on much more responsibility since transitioning from an intern to full-time employee, most notable of which has been my ability to have a larger creative impact on the progression of our project. Being privy to more detail and understanding the larger scope of the project has allowed me to develop and implement my own experiments.
How connected is your job with other departments of the organization?
As our project has progressed from an early research concept to the development of more substantial prototypes, I have had much more interaction with other employees in product development and marketing. The collaboration between departments has been vital to the progression of our idea into a potential commercial product, and further collaboration will be needed to bring the product to market.
How connected do you feel with saving the lives of patients or helping the community?
Working in the medical device industry, I definitely feel that my work significantly impacts the lives of many people. Being a part of the research group has even furthered my connectivity as we constantly strive to uncover new solutions to an array of problems faced by patients. My project in particular was chosen in large part by its ability to eliminate the leading cause of transfusion related mortality world-wide, and so I love coming to work knowing that my efforts have a direct impact on the lives of millions.
What skills are critical to your success in your job?
Problem-solving, thinking outside of the box, attention to detail, and dexterity are some important skill sets to have as a research scientist at Haemonetics.
What personality traits do you think are needed to be successful in your job?
Diligence, creativity, patience, persistence, a high level of intrinsic motivation, and a passion for scientific understanding are some essential personality traits for a research scientist.
What drew you to Haemonetics initially and how has Haemonetics changed since then?
I heard great things about the company from a former fellow student at RPI and current employee at Haemonetics, and so I decided to apply. Discovering how much pride the employees take in their work and the large impact Haemonetics has on the lives of patients has been what made me choose Haemonetics as my career starter. Since joining, Haemonetics has put even more emphasis on branching into new markets which is very exciting as a research scientist because you are able to think more broadly and work on solving a variety of problems faced by patients.
What do you think about the Culture here?
I love the culture here at Haemonetics. Especially within the R&D department, it is one of cohesiveness and an eagerness to achieve project goals, leading to a highly productive group.
What have you gained from working at Haemonetics?
I have gained an in-depth scientific knowledge on the biophysical aspects of blood, an understanding of the blood products market, necessary laboratory skills, and meaningful network connections.
Do you remember your first project at Haemonetics?
One of my first projects at Haemonetics was to analyze red blood cell concentrate over a 42 day storage period based on RBC deformability and membrane stability, as well as monitor the effect of osmolality changes on these parameters.
What has been your favorite project at Haemonetics?
Working on the development of our filter housing has been my favorite project at Haemonetics thus far.
What do you find the most challenging at Haemonetics?
The most challenging aspect at Haemonetics is staying abreast of new technologies in a wide array of markets. However, this challenging task is also fun and exciting as you get to learn of the latest and greatest in blood technology, and it fuels the creativity needed for your own project.
What are 3 words to describe Haemonetics?
Collaborative, diverse, innovative
What advice do you have for prospective job candidates?
Don’t be afraid to show your personality in the hiring process. Haemonetics is a diverse, tight knit community where individual uniqueness drives our collective success.
What’s one piece of advice you’d give to recent college grads that aspire to become an employee in your department?
Be open to and look for summer internship positions. It is a great way to gain experience, while also seeing if Haemonetics is the right choice for you.
What is on your wish list for the next 5 years at Haemonetics?
To bring our current project to market, be named as an inventor on a patent, help author a research paper, take on more responsibility, start my own project, continue my education, and increase my engineering skill set.
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