Science @ Work

Hill Laboratories is New Zealand’s largest independent testing laboratory and is based in Hamilton. The company employs hundreds of staff, most of whom work in three scientific testing areas – agricultural, environmental and food.

A team of customer service specialists, IT experts, administrators and executives are also employed at the business. Roles range from lab positions requiring no previous experience, to high level senior roles for scientists with university degrees.

For more information visit www.hill-laboratories.com

Hill Laboratories

Courtney Fox

Courtney’s Top Career Tip

Research & Development Technician – Inorganics

Don’t be afraid to start at the bottom

because you learn a lot by working

your way up.

What got you interested in this career?

Believe it or not it was Harry Potter - chemistry is the closest thing I could find to magic! The amount of things that chemistry explains is pretty amazing.

How did you first get into work?

I went straight from high school to the University of Waikato where I began studying for my Bachelor of Science. I wanted to have a break from university, so I looked for a job in the science field and ended up at Hill Laboratories. I am at a point in my career where I would benefit from that extra bit of knowledge and so I’m finishing my degree part time.

What school subjects are relevant to your work?

Chemistry and science mainly - it makes my job easier when I understand the chemical reactions/interactions in a test method, but most core subjects would be useful in my job. Maths is useful when needing to calculate different equations so that the correct result is reported. English is also really important as my job involves writing up reports which can be read by the whole company.

Did you do any relevant study after school?

I started my degree majoring in Chemistry, and also did a wine science and viticulture course which was pretty amazing.

What does your job involve?

My job is to validate the testing methods on the ICP-MS instruments, understand how the instrument works as well as being able to manipulate different variables in order to get the most accurate result. I’ve found that I thrive working both independently and in a team environment, and that a good work ethic goes a long way.

What are your future career ambitions?

I would like to become a Technologist – verifying current methods as well as developing new methods to be able to test different samples. I’ve recently transferred from Agriculture into Environmental so I’m keen to keep learning and experiencing as much as possible.