Amy Ruybal

325 Vista Rd. SE

Albuquerque, NM 87112

May 30th, 2022

Dr. Gerald White

287 Mountain Ave. NW
Albuquerque, NM. 87108

Dear Dr. White,

I am applying for the position of chemical research and analysis technician in the Kemtah branch
of the laboratories. I found the job listing on the official website, and was also recommended to
look into the position by my current supervisor at the labs.

I have graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in chemistry from the University of New Mexico.
While perusing this degree, I was able to assist with some research being done by graduate
students and professors in the chemistry department, and worked as a chemistry T.A.

I have been an intern at Sandia labs for the past 3 years, so I am familiar with the facilities, as
well as the protocol for working in a high security location. I have also already received my
security clearance. I began my internship filing documents, and as more opportunities came up, I
took jobs that were more based around my field of study. I have previous experience working as
an assistant in chemical research at the labs, and have assisted with studies several times. I am
also familiar with many of the personnel that work in the chemical research department, and
have done work for them before.

I am familiar with the equipment that is used in the labs, and can handle them safely. I also work
well under pressure, as many of the experiments I’ve helped with had to be completed quickly
and accurately. Since I have worked with so many of the personnel in the chemistry department,
know who to communicate with in order to move information along effectively. I have written
many reports detailing the results of experiments as well, so the data is presented clearly for
those who need it. I have had extensive training under the Sandia labs protocol, and know how to
conduct my tasks safely and correctly. For these reasons, I believe that I am very qualified for
this position.

Thank you for your time in reviewing my application, and I hope you will consider me for this
position. If you have any further inquiries, please contact me at:
(505)204-1497
[email protected]

Sincerely,
Amy Ruybal
Amy Ruybal
 Amy Ruybal
325 Vista Rd. SE, Albuquerque, NM 87112
(505)204-1497 | [email protected]

C A R EE R OB J EC TI V E

 Chemistry Lab technician in Kemtah branch at Sandia National Laboratories

ED UC A TI ON
University of New Mexico Albuquerque, N.M.

Bachelor of Science 2022

 Major: Chemistry
 Minor: Art

EX P ER I ENC E
Sandia National Laboratories Albuquerque, New Mexico

Intern, research work 2019 – present

 Proofreading and filing reports

 Working with equipment in the lab
 Testing acidity of contaminated soil samples
 Recording reaction rates in organic compounds
 Testing durability of Lithium batteries when exposed to heat

University of New Mexico Albuquerque, New Mexico

Chemistry Lab Teaching Assistant. 2021-2022

 Demonstrated to students how to properly use/maintain lab equipment

 Teaching proper formatting for writing procedures and lab reports
 Assisting students in order to carry out experiments correctly
 Demonstrating how to set up various mathematical equations to analyze the data
 Conducting skills assessments
 Grading work, checking for accuracy
 Worked with head of the chemistry department to develop experiments

Panera Bread Albuquerque, New Mexico

Sales Associate/ Floor manager 2017-2019

SKILLS

 Lab Equipment: work with high risk electrodes, glass equipment, titration drop counter,
temperature and pressure probes, safety readings, chemical waste management, online
graphing system for recorded data
 Organization: Knowledge of Sandia laboratories filing system, security protocol
 Communication: Writing formatted lab reports, Microsoft Excel, Vernier data collection
program, assistant training.
 Extensive work with: Spectroscopy, acid-base dissociation, decomposition reactions

A W A R DS/ A C HI E VE ME N TS

 Part of the research team awarded Employee Recognition Award (ERA) for tests on
contaminated soil in 2021

R EF ER ENC E S

 Dr. K. Joseph Ho The University of New Mexico

[email protected]
(505) 583-2778
 Dr. M. Lassiter Sandia National Laboratories
[email protected]
(505)989-4576 ext.2

 Dr. D. Sanchez Sandia National Laboratories

[email protected]
(505)989-3332 ext.5

 Veronica Romero (supervisor) Sandia National Laboratories

[email protected]
(505)989-1287 ext.1
 Interview Script

Interviewer: Hello Miss Ruybal, thank you for coming in today.

Me: Hello Dr. White, thank you for giving me this opportunity.

Interviewer: Tell me a little bit about yourself.

Me: Well, I just graduated with my bachelor’s degree in chemistry from UNM this year,

where I forked as a chemistry T.A. I have also been an intern here at the labs for the past

three years. I’ve been lucky enough to have had several opportunities to assist in the

chemistry labs here. It has really allowed mw to pick up on the necessary skills to work

in my field of study in addition to experience I had in the college laboratories.

Interviewer: Very relevant experience! Where did you find out about this position, and

why does it interest you?

Me: I have been checking the positions available on the company website, especially as I

neared graduation, and I also had this position recommended to me by my supervisor

here at the labs. Also, since the upcoming project I’d be starting with deals with testing

compounds and how they react to certain changes, I figured this would be a perfect first

project since I have had extensive experience in this subject area.

Interviewer: Why should we hire you?

Me: Since I’ve been an intern here for the past two years, I’ve had lots of opportunities to

not only work in the chemistry labs here, but I’ve been able to learn how this facility

functions. I feel that I will be able to do very well in the experiments that I’m assigned

to. Through my work here, I have also been able to meet and even work with the people
who would be my associates. I think that this familiarity will help me to transition into

being an employee very smoothly. I take my work very seriously, and am always

looking to learn more about the subjects I’m working with.

Interviewer: Where do you see yourself in three to five years?

Me: I would like to be settled into the chemistry department by that time, and be

designing and conducting research projects as a lead researcher. I feel that starting as a

technician will give me plenty of opportunities to further develop my skill so I can get to

this point.

Interviewer: What is you greatest strength?

Me: I always want to improve at whatever I am doing. I think that if you’re always open

to the possibility of improvement, you’ll have a much easier time learning something

new. This mindset has definitely helped me to stay motivated and improve my skills.

Interviewer: Glad to hear that. What do you consider to be your greatest weakness?

Me: Since I haven’t had a chance to do many experiments in certain subjects like

thermochemistry, I still need to gain more experience. But, I feel that constant work in

the lab will allow me to develop the skill set I need to do well in newer subjects.

Interviewer: I really like that you have a plan to improve upon that. What have you

liked most about your work here at the Laboratories?

Me: I really enjoy how many projects there are to work on. Keeping the work diverse

has been really great for giving me learning opportunities and interest in the tasks I’m

given.
Interviewer: Well, you seem to be a great fit for this company. I’m happy to say that

you will definitely be hearing from us soon.

Me: That’s great news! Again, thank you so much for this opportunity, and I look

forward to hearing from you.

Amy Ruybal
325 Vista Rd. SE [email protected]
Albuquerque, NM 87112 (505)204-1497

April 1st, 2019

Misty Thomas
567 89th St.
Albuquerque, NM 87109

Dear Professor Thomas,

For this project, I decided to choose an application for a career. Although grad school is
definitely a great opportunity, it’s just never really something I’ve felt would be the right choice
for me. The job that I would really like to end up with would not require me to attend graduate
school, and so I feel that the career path after I graduate is the worthwhile path for me to take.

I struggled with two main things during this project. First, whether or not I wanted to peruse my
master’s degree first, or apply with a bachelor’s degree. I am currently trying to decide which
path I’ll choose, so both are an option. I decided to go with a bachelor’s degree since it is the
path that I am currently on, so I have a bit of a clearer plan based around that out come at this
time. Second, since Sandia Laboratories is a government research lab, it is very secure. This
made it difficult to find any detailed descriptions of available jobs and protocol, as well as
requirements. I had to do a lot of searching, and asked people who have applied at Sandia before
to get more information about what to expect.

I really enjoyed being able to practice writing a professional application, as well as learning more
about the place where I would like to work. It’s very important to be familiar with the structures
for these documents, especially since I know I will need to use them to pursue my career. Being
able to apply this to our personal choice for a career definitely helped me understand how to use
these documents to create a proper application that will be relevant.

I wrote several draft for each of my documents for this project, and looked at the templates and
chapter 5 in TCT to make adjustments. I did this so that I could catch grammatical mistakes, and
make the documents easy to read. I also made sure to format the documents in the correct way,
so that they look professional and clear. This allowed me to demonstrate proper reviewing and
editing.

I did extensive research into the hiring process at Sandia labs, what kind of people would be
reviewing my application, and how the interview process works. Doing this allowed me to make
sure my application was the correct type and composition for the kind of job I want to apply for.
This made my documents fit in the proper context, and so I was able to demonstrate project
analysis.

I made sure to outline what information I wanted to include in each document, as well as take the
time to familiarize myself with the proper formatting for an application in a technical and
scientific field. I set a timeline to plan when I wanted to have each part of the project done so
that I had plenty of time to review and edit before submitting it. This allowed me to utilize
proper project planning.

Sincerely,

Amy Ruybal
Amy Ruybal