Nora Withrow Concludes First-Ever Fellowship at Novartis Mengeš

As part of the annual ASEF Weekend Getaway organized for our fellows, the ASEF community recently visited Technical Research & Development department of Novartis in Mengeš. The main goal of the visit was to offer our fellows a first-hand look into Slovenia’s highly competitive industrial and pharmaceutical landscape. As a key strategic partner of ASEF, Novartis played a central role in this year’s program.

Novartis in Slovenia holds a critically important global position as the first company in the history of the Slovenian pharmaceutical industry to develop, manufacture, and market innovative medicines. Through an inspiring presentation and a guided tour of their state-of-the-art facilities – where fellows had the exclusive opportunity to explore upstream and downstream processes as well as analytics – the group discovered that Slovenian locations support about half of Novartis’s priority innovative products for patients worldwide and participate in all five of their high-tech platforms. The curiosity of the fellows sparked an engaging Q&A session, proving once again that a relentless thirst for knowledge is what truly unites the ASEF community.

A special highlight of the visit took place on Wednesday, July 22, when ASEF Visit Slovenia Fellow Nora Withrow presented the results of her research visit, making history as the very first ASEF fellow at Novartis. During her fellowship at Novartis Mengeš, Nora’s fellowship experience was supported by Lucija Majal Belca, while scientific guidance were provided by Žan Kovačič, Janja Dermol-Černe, and Aleš Ručigaj. Nora also collaborated closely with team members Joachim Hendriksen, Tilen Hribar, Ivan Popjanev, and Martin Ciringer on the End2End Planning Assistant project.

Reflecting on her milestone experience, Nora shared:

“My fellowship at Novartis has been an incredibly rewarding experience. It has allowed me to apply concepts I’ve learned in the classroom, collaborate with industry professionals, and contribute to a project with meaningful impact. Presenting my project to my department and leadership strengthened my confidence and professional growth, and I am beyond grateful to be the first ASEF fellow at Novartis!” – Nora Withrow

Nora is a sophomore undergraduate student at the University of Cincinnati, studying Chemical Engineering with a minor in Biology. Passionate about the intersection of engineering and life sciences, she aims to pursue graduate studies and a career in research. Raised near Cleveland, Ohio, within a vibrant Slovenian community, Nora grew up immersed in her heritage through the Kres folklore dance group and active involvement at Slovenska Pristava – a connection deeply inspired by her grandparents, Lou and Sylvia. During her fellowship, Nora enjoyed gaining valuable international research experience and enhancing her problem-solving skills at Novartis, while also taking time to reconnect with family, explore Slovenia’s natural beauty, and bond with her fellow ASEF community.