Future Opportunities Product Development… at The Hershey… · Hershey

Summary: The Hershey Company is a confectionery company committed to creating opportunity and positive impact through its products, communities, and business practices. The Product Development Intern will support R&D projects by developing prototypes, conducting experiments, analyzing data, solving technical problems, and collaborating with cross-functional teams from benchtop development through commercialization.

Responsibilities:
- Project responsibilities include carrying out experimental designs, creating prototypes, performing experiments, and reporting results. Daily work responsibilities will include creating trial protocol with the use of DOE principle, use of benchtop development, prototype evaluation, analyzing experimental data, executing experiments on pilot scale equipment, and preparing trial reports including next steps
- Provide support to research projects or portions of larger projects which provide innovative new products and/or product/process improvements in R&D
- Perform prototyping and development from benchtop to pilot plant to full manufacturing scale
- Test ideas through experimentation, applying technical rigor and scientific principles and practices
- Determine next steps through problem solving while understanding the business impact
- Assist team in accomplishing project tasks
- Interact closely with a cross-functional group of technical, professional, and managerial staff of R&D, as well as production, engineering, sensory, science and technology, analytical and marketing
- Provide input for technical feasibility for new product concepts
- Partner with Supply Chain to provide technical support to drive quality and value improvement in products and processes

Required Qualifications:
- * Majors: Food Science, Engineering (Food Processing, Chemical, Ag & Biological, etc.), Chemistry, Biology
- * Must be pursuing an undergraduate Bachelor's degree (preferably junior or senior)
- * Minimum GPA: 3.0
- * Strong interest in hands-on work and applying technical rigor and scientific principles and practices
- * Highly motivated
- * Comfortable with laboratory and pilot plant equipment
- * Proficient in written and communication skills
- * Computer literate (Excel, Word, PowerPoint)
- * Demonstrated problem solving and evaluation capabilities
- * Excellent troubleshooting skills
- * Able to work independently, and as part of a team environment
- * Must be open and comfortable with change
- * The prospective candidate will be responsible for identifying a reliable source of transportation during the duration of the internship, preferably a car
- * The prospective candidate should be aware that they may need to handle allergens including dairy, peanuts, tree nuts, soy, wheat, eggs and other food ingredient chemicals and allergens while wearing appropriate PPE during their internship
- * The manufacturing facility where this internship is located handles the following allergens on a regular basis (dairy, wheat, soy, peanut, tree nuts, egg, sesame)

Preferred Qualifications:
- * Prior internships with related experience are highly valued

Required Skills: Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Word, Microsoft PowerPoint

Internship Start Date: Start in 2027 Summer