Evonik’s Rachel Hughes Receives Award From Society Of Women Engineers

Rachel Hughes, a chemical engineer at Evonik’s Birmingham Laboratories, has received the Outstanding Collegiate Member Award from the Society of Women Engineers, who lauded her outstanding leadership in The University of Alabama’s section of the society.

"This is a well-deserved honor for Rachel,” said Robert Adkins, Birmingham Laboratories site manager and director of operations management. “She is a key part of the Evonik team. Rachel has outstanding leadership skills, and the drive and determination that will take her far at Evonik Industries. We are extremely proud to have Rachel at Evonik."

Hughes, who joined Evonik earlier this year, was featured in the October edition of Magazine of the Society of Women Engineers. The article detailed Hughes’ success as treasurer, vice president and president of the society’s University of Alabama section and her efforts to interest more women in engineering and science.

As a student, Hughes spent three semesters in an intern program working on research projects at Birmingham Laboratories. She joined Evonik in July 2013, after graduating from the University of Alabama with a degree in chemical engineering.

“My experience with Evonik was paramount to my education,” said Hughes. “I was not only given the opportunity to apply what I learned in class, but I was put in situations that challenged me in ways a classroom environment never could, and was given increasing levels of responsibility each time I returned to Evonik. I was able to hone my communication, time management, and multi-tasking skills in a professional, supportive environment in addition to learning and growing technically.”

The intern experience was one of the reasons she joined the Evonik team, says Hughes. “I cannot stress the importance of gaining job experience while still in school,“ she explains. “I was much more prepared to enter the work force as a full-time employee because of my experience, and employers with whom I interviewed were primarily interested in what I had learned at Evonik. You get to learn about the industry in-depth while you're still in school and gain an understanding for how particular companies work.“

Hughes said she was attracted to Evonik because the company offers a wide variety of opportunities. “There are professionals all around me from whom I can learn, and Evonik‘s diversity as a company provides opportunities both in the pharmaceutical industry and in other chemical fields. It’s no wonder that Evonik is one of the world’s leading specialty chemical companies.“

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