UA bioscience students met with some of Arizona’s largest bioindustry companies during the Second Annual UA Student/Bioindustry Networking Event on Wednesday.

“”We started this last year to show UA students what bioindustry opportunities there are in the state,”” said Nina Ossanna, Bio5 Institute business development and strategic planning director and senior licensing associate for health sciences advanced projects. “”It may be our second year doing it, but based on the response we’ve received this should become a regular event.””

Students were able to network with some of Arizona’s top bioscience companies. Approximately 175 students attended the event.

“”Part of the mission of Bio5 is build a pipeline between UA students and biomedical and bioengineering companies in Arizona,”” said Kevin Hall, Bio5 Institute director of research training and career development. “”Companies get to come in and see the quality of students we have here, and students can see what Arizona has to offer. It’s really a win-win.””

Ten private companies attended the event. They included Genomics USA, Ventana Medical Systems, and W.L. Gore.

“”The UA has great engineering programs and lots of really quality students,”” said Cody Bliss, a product specialist at W.L. Gore. “”We like the to get connected with students in our field, and there are lots of great students here.””

University Medical Center medical labs, UA Natural Products Center and UA Career Services were also present. 

“”These kind of events are all about connecting students with the world of work,”” said Cyndy Watson, an assistant director at Career Services. “”Students may come here to earn a degree, but eventually they have to leave. Events like this help them to be prepared for what comes next in their lives.””

Students were also excited about the opportunities at the event.

“”I came here to learn about internships in Tucson,”” said Meredith Roberts, a biosystems engineering junior. “”There are a lot of opportunities here for future networking.””