SU CO-OP’s / PART ONE

The Southern University Office of Career Services now offers students the opportunity to develop career building survival skills with its Cooperative Education (Co-op) and Internship Program.
Sophomore Terrica Wilson, a Shreveport native and marketing major, is a co-op student participating in the program and working at McNeil Consumer & Specialty Pharmaceuticals in Fort Washington, Pa.
McNeil Consumer & Specialty Pharmaceuticals is a diversified over-the-counter pharmaceutical and nutraceuticals company. Their base business consists of Tylenol cold & sinus products, a gastrointestinal line; including Imodium, as well as Motrin and ADHD focused Concerta. The corporation also specializes in the direct marketing of prescription pharmaceuticals to doctors and hospitals. In addition to the Fort Washington headquarters, there are manufacturing facilities in Las Piedras, Puerto Rico, and Round Rock, Texas, and Lancaster, Pa.
This semester marks Wilson’s first as a co-op student. Wilson works in the purchasing department of the company where her job entails working with outside suppliers who produce bottles for the packaged drugs. She is also responsible for tracking buyers, along with their shipments, handling purchasing orders and filling different acquisitions. Wilson has been able to maintain her full-time status as a student by taking on-line courses offered by the university.
“You should start working as early as possible, so you can get a lot of experience,” Wilson said.
“Although, it is a big sacrifice being away from school, it helps toward your future,” she said.
While working at McNeil, co-op students have the ability to work side by side with full-time workers and establish skills that will be helpful for future opportunities, Wilson said. Students may be invited back to work at McNeil, either as a co-op or full-time employee, depending on their job performance.
“Student workers not only gain skills necessary for career development but they also gain skills for surviving on their own,” she said.
While in Fort Washington, Wilson said she shares a 3-story house with another student worker at McNeil. She said McNeil does offer housing assistance and a relocation stipend, but due to the fact that Fort Washington’s cost of living is high, Wilson felt that sharing a house would be cheaper.