Sarah Kersten ’25 brings industry insights to campus through AbbVie connections

Carthage College student Sarah Kersten ’25 is turning professional experience into powerful learning opportunities for her peers.

As a Power BI developer and data analyst intern at AbbVie, Sarah has used her role to strengthen ties between Carthage and the global biopharmaceutical company. This spring, she collaborated with fellow engineering student Lauren Howe ’26 — president of the Carthage College Society of Women Engineers (SWE) — to bring two dynamic AbbVie-led events to the Carthage Engineering Center.

Sarah, who is majoring in both computer science and data science, saw an opportunity to share her industry experience with fellow students and help them explore careers in STEM fields.

On February 26, AbbVie’s Information Research Academic Partnerships Team visited campus to present a compelling panel discussion, titled “How Women Can Advocate for Themselves in Male-Dominated Fields.” The panel featured four inspiring AbbVie professionals: Tracey Boone (director of Veeva community of practice and platform initiatives), Kirstin Phelps (business systems consultant), Sarah Wohlman (principal data scientist II and fusion team lead – GTP AI), and Karyn Quick (director of IT regulatory compliance). Drawing from their own experiences, the panelists shared practical advice on self-advocacy, building collaboration, and recognizing that allies are often eager to support and uplift others in the workplace.

Amadeo Salvador and Alan Bajramovic of the Real World Data team at AbbVie presented a Tech Talk to engineering students.AbbVie returned to Carthage on April 9 for a Tech Talk presented by Amadeo Salvador and Alan Bajramovic of the Real World Data team. Their session, “The Role of Data Science in Real-World Data and Strategic Business Decision-Making,” offered students interested in business, healthcare, and interdisciplinary collaboration across STEM a behind-the-scenes look at how data science influences major decisions in the pharmaceutical industry — and highlighted potential career paths at companies like AbbVie.

“It’s great to see SWE embracing our goal of connecting with local industry,” said Kathryn Hasz, assistant professor of engineering and SWE faculty advisor. “AbbVie showed how the skills our students are learning here can help advance pharmaceutical development through big data.”

These events underscore the impact of student initiative and the value of industry partnerships in enriching the Carthage learning experience.

Sponsoring Department, Office, or Organization:

Engineering Department