Mark Benesch catalyzes UMBC’s partnership with drug maker AstraZeneca

Thu, 16 Oct 2025 12:41:50 -0400
alumni, fall-2025, research, ug, ugrad

Reposted from UMBC News: Mark Benesch catalyzes UMBC’s partnership with drug maker AstraZeneca

On a recent Wednesday in September, thousands of people filled the arena of the Retriever Activity Center for the UMBC 2025 Fall Career and Internship Fair. At the booth for pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca, Mark Benesch '08, chemical engineering, eagerly engaged with students, some of whom waited in a line 30-odd people long at times for their chance to ask questions and exchange contact information. Interns and staff in a lab at AstraZeneca. Foreground left to right: Ortisemoyowa Ikomi (capital project intern), Fola Okubanjo, Mark Benesch '08 (Americas capital portfolio director) Background left to right: Manasi Pukazhenthi, Tania Monterastelli '08 (senior capital project manager), Andrea Baez, and Phil Haven. Photo courtesy of Benesch.

Benesch has regularly brought his enthusiasm and energy to UMBC career fairs, first as a recruiter for ExxonMobil, where he worked immediately after graduating, and later for the Columbia, Maryland-based chemical company W.R. Grace. But it was after starting at AstraZeneca as the senior director of the capital projects portfolio for the Americas region in January 2023 that Benesch spotted the opportunity to take his connections with the university to the next level.

Mark Benesch and other AstraZeneca recruiters talk with students at the UMBC Career Fair in September. (Photo courtesy of Miriam Friedman)

AstraZeneca employs thousands of people across the state of Maryland, including at a large scientific campus in Gaithersburg, a center in Frederick that manufactures a diverse class of drugs called biologics, and a newly opened facility in Rockville that will manufacture immunotherapy drugs to treat cancer. The company has announced plans to invest $50 billion in America by 2030 for medicines manufacturing and research and development.

From the hundreds of UMBC alumni at AstraZeneca, Benesch has recruited and inspired a team of eight dedicated to forging stronger links to their alma mater. They, together with partners in AstraZeneca's Early Career Programs, have built a strong alumni-driven network linking UMBC students with opportunities at the company.

"Mark is always thinking about innovative ways to connect," says Christine Routzahn, the director of the Career Center at UMBC who has worked with Benesch to expand the UMBC-AstraZeneca partnership. "He's very passionate about UMBC and ensuring our students are successful."

Benesch's efforts will be recognized when he receives the 2025 Distinguished Service Alumni Award this October.

Mark Benesch and some members of the UMBC recruiting team he has brought together. [Above], Benesch, Matthew Schwarz '11, Shakir Muradymov '07, Chioma Ngobili '04, Tania Monterastelli '08, and Sara Rego in front of the AstraZeneca Gaithersburg campus. [Below], the team chats inside. Not pictured are team members Emily Elliott, M.S. '22, Asmaa Hasan '22, Moe Nayel '15, and Babacarr Lemon '23. (Brad Ziegler/UMBC)

A growing partnership

The work of the AstraZeneca-UMBC recruiting team has gone far beyond career fairs. Under Benesch's stewardship, AstraZeneca played a key role at the UMBC-hosted 2024 Mid-Atlantic Student Conference for the American Institute of Chemical Engineers. The company sponsored the event and Pran Patel, the vice president of global engineering and real estate at AstraZeneca, served as a keynote speaker. Benesch met monthly with student organizers of the conference, helped lead a popular conference workshop, and mobilized other AstraZeneca employees to volunteer.

"From a five-minute conversation at the career fair, Mark took the initiative to follow up and create real collaboration opportunities," says An Dang '24, a student organizer who led the fundraising efforts for the conference.

Benesch and his team have also worked with UMBC to launch new collaborations such as dedicated on-campus information sessions and recruiting events, alumni happy hours, and tours and networking at the AstraZeneca Gaithersburg campus.

"UMBC On the Road" took students on a tour of the AstraZeneca facility under construction in Rockville in fall 2024. (Photo courtesy of Benesch)

The efforts have paid off, as the number of UMBC students applying to summer internships at AstraZeneca has increased by 31 percent in the past year, and the number of students accepting internships has grown from one in summer 2024 to seven in 2025.

On the research side, Benesch attended the College of Engineering and Information Technology's recent Research Day and is facilitating discussions of ways AstraZeneca may partner with UMBC faculty on joint projects.

"Mark's ongoing dedication to serving his alma mater has been nothing short of extraordinary," says Mariajosé Castellanos, a teaching professor in the Department of Chemical, Biochemical, and Environmental Engineering who first met Benesch in her thermodynamics class in 2006. "As a faculty member who has been in the department for 20 years and served as the AIChE UMBC Chapter advisor for the past nine, I can confidently say that I have never seen this level of consistent engagement and support from any other undergraduate alumnus."

Building community and empowering individuals

A mixer for UMBC alumni employees and interns at AstraZeneca. (Photo courtesy of Miriam Friedman)

Benesch, who was the first from his family to go to college, credits his UMBC education with empowering him to realize his own potential.

"At UMBC, I was exposed to so much, and from that I gained confidence. Technical confidence, yes, but also the confidence to navigate the diversity of the world and the opportunities that come from that," he says. "So I'm inspired to help today's students receive that same kind of support, and even more so."

"Mark is so animated when he's connecting with people. He listens well and he really brings out the best in students," says Miriam Friedman, assistant director of alumni professional networks.

On his part, Benesch says the students give him energy. "They are curious and smart and I see their enormous potential," he says. "To give them opportunities to realize it for themselves is really gratifying."

Abi Postus, a junior in chemical engineering who interned this summer on Benesch's AstraZeneca team, says she was impressed by his efforts to connect her to resources and make sure she got the most out of the experience.

"I remember one piece of advice he told me," she says, "which was: 'Don't be afraid to take up space.' I found that very helpful because this was my first internship and it was kind of daunting. That made me feel more confident."