The University of Massachusetts and Genzyme Corporation, a biotechnology firm based in Cambridge, Mass., have unveiled a system-wide internship program commencing this summer.

The program was announced at the Life Science Talent Summit on the UMass-Boston campus and will provide a hands-on opportunity for up to 10 undergraduate students.

Upon completion, the rigorous program will award selected scholars a $5,000 grant for senior year tuition and fees.

“Prospective applicants must be incoming seniors who have amassed a 3.25 GPA or better,” said Ellen Reifsneider, Vice President for University Relations and Diversity at Genzyme.

The program will seek students with backgrounds in the life sciences and applicable engineering who exhibit interest in the biotech field.

Proportional representation among the system’s campuses will not be a factor in the selection process, although the company hopes to offer opportunities to undergraduates from Amherst, Boston, Dartmouth and Lowell.

“In addition to providing valuable learning opportunities for students, the UMass/Genzyme partnership will assist in the area of affordability by providing scholarship benefits to UMass students,” said Robert Connolly, the Associate Vice President for University Relations.

Genzyme has expressed desire to aid interns in job placement upon successful completion of the program and graduation from the UMass system.

The corporation is confident awarded scholars will have gained the necessary experience to achieve in the biotech world.

Company officials hope the partnership will serve as a catalyst for similar collaborations in the future.

“It is critical for Genzyme and for others in the life science industry to strengthen our connection with UMass and with the other local academic institutions that have helped create a world-class culture of innovation in this region,” said Henri A Termeer, chairman and CEO of Genzyme Corporation who began with the biotech company in 1983, said in a statement.

Although the UMass and Genzyme partnership lacks direct relation to Gov. Deval Patrick’s $1 billion initiative proposed last May, Connolly believes it exemplifies the private sector-public institution collaboration the Governor believes will benefit the economy.

“State funding for such partnerships would lend stability and promote growth for the companies of the region, and could attract other companies in the industry to locate here, which would be good for Massachusetts and its citizens,” said Connolly.

The collaboration addresses the importance of keeping and bringing the field’s most progressive minds to the state, according to UMass President Jack M. Wilson.

“This is yet another example of the of the benefit of private-public partnerships-it provides great opportunities for our students, opportunities that can help them begin careers in the growing field of biotechnology and it also supports Genzyme’s ability to train and recruit skilled workers in Massachusetts,” Wilson said.

Joan C. Wood, Senior Vice President of Leadership and Organization Development at Genzyme, shares Wilson’s sentiment on the importance of maintaining and compounding an innovative work force in Massachusetts.

“With this partnership and similar ones in the future, we hope to train and prepare the next generation of scientists,” Wood said.

Genzyme was established in 1981 in Boston’s CombatZone, atop a 15-story Garment building. With 21 employees and a revenue of just above $2 million, the company began an ascension defined by the development of innovative products and profitable acquisitions.

Today the corporation reports revenues of $3.8 billion and employs 10,000 people in 40 countries. Genzyme focuses on rare inherited disorders, kidney disease, orthopaedics, cancer, transplant and diagnostic testing. Last year, Genzyme was awarded the National Medal of Technology by President George W. Bush for technological innovation. The company was named one of the countries “100 Best Companies to Work for” by FORTUNE.

In 2005, a Wall Street Journal article highlighted surging biotech profits in conjunction with a seven-year monopoly guaranteed to biotech companies by Federal Law on Orphan drugs. These drugs treat orphan diseases, rare ailments that the science world was not treating for lack of incentive.

Genzyme’s orphan drug, Cerezyme, is taken by individuals suffering from an enzyme deficiency known as Gaucher disease. Monopoly status guarantees Cerezyme will not have a generic brand competition until the market moratorium expires.

Cerezyme was reported in March to be one of the world’s most expensive drugs; a year’s supply can cost $200,000. The company profit margin is a reported 30 percent.

Matt Sheehan can be reached at [email protected]