Industrial placement student Review

My work placement at GlaxoSmithKline has been incredibly eye-opening and useful. I have thoroughly enjoyed meeting a new group of people and working beside them on a daily basis. It has been a very helpful insight into the pharmaceutical industry and I would say it has provided me with the best possible experience if I wished to pursue a career in this sector.

I got the impression the permanent members of staff enjoyed having placement students around and I never felt like a burden to them. Overall I have felt very valued and as though the work I did over the year would be valued by my team even after I have left.

In general, every member of staff I have worked with has been very welcoming and happy to hep out with any problem I've had. I had a great amount of guidance provided to me by my two supervisors and even those I did not directly work/people in much higher positions with were very helpful and happy to talk. I have also signed up to a mentoring programme during my time here which has provided me with extra support. I think GlaxoSmithKline offers you a chance to learn a lot from a group of very intelligent people, however, you have to make the most of this by being pro-active and seeking out the expertise around you.

It fluctuated greatly! At the beginning of the placement I felt very bored a lot of the time as it took a while to learn the skills which would enable me to go into the lab alone. However, after the first few months the work load increased and I was very busy, sometimes having to stay a bit later after work or do a bit of work on weekends. This suited me well as I like to stay busy and have things to do, Now at the end of my placement the work load has decreased again, but this is to be expected as things start to wind-up. In general, I feel as though I could have done more.

Once you have learnt the necessary techniques to be in the lab, you are able to conduct experiments independently. You are also expected to share your data and present work at meetings to the rest of your team as every other person is expected to. In this sense, you are given the same responsibilities as a permanent member of staff, however, there are certain procedures which of course you are untrained for/do not have enough time to learn within one year.

The best thing about my placement has been the skill set I have developed. My supervisor was very patient and taught me the lab skills I needed to complete my project. By the end of the year I felt so much more confident in my technical skills and able to apply my knowledge to other problems I may encounter in the lab. We were provided with a great deal of online training when we joined the organisation which has been helpful when learning about the company values and structure. I have attended countless seminars from prominent speakers in their field and developed my knowledge of current scientific research as well as attending workshops on leadership, communication, and teamwork. It has taught me a great deal about how to present oneself in a professional environment, the "office etiquette", and I feel like I have a much clearer idea of what to expect from a job in the pharmaceutical industry. Overall the skills I have developed have given me the best preparation for any job I wish to pursue and I think the experience has matured me tremendously.

The general office atmosphere has been very friendly and welcoming. We have adopted "smart working" in the year I have been working here, which means you have no "official" desk and you can chose to sit wherever you like. Despite this, many people chose to sit in the same office as you get to know one another very well and feel more at home! People tend to be in and out throughout the day, off to do lab work or attend meetings but there is always some cake circulating! I have put 7 as it is a nice place to work and people are passionate about what they do, but it's not too rowdy and you can get your work done!

My university didn't provide much help at all- it was left to the students to organise anything. GlaxoSmithKline were very helpful and organised however. We had an introductory "familiarisation day" where we could meet our supervisors and other placement students. They provided us with information quite regularly in the lead-up to the beginning of our placement and there was never really a moment when I felt like I didn't know what was going on.

I have learnt a lot about technical skills/lab work whilst here but with regards to personal development I don't think I have received that much. I sought out the advice of a mentor and have attended some optional workshops on leadership etc, and whilst they have been very helpful, they were things I have sought out myself. Most of the skills learnt have been technical.

In general, a lot of students would like to work for GSK after their placement. It seems like a happy place to be and provides you with a lot of training and support. There are people from many disciplines who work here so the atmosphere is exciting and energetic. I am still quite unsure of the career progression process if you work here, that could be something they give you more info about. Working here for a year would be the best thing to do to give you the experience necessary to apply for a future job here.

Yes, I think I have made some life-long friends here! There are around 100 students on site and a good social atmosphere amongst everyone. I would give a 9/10 for the social scene with other placement students! With regards to fellow colleagues, the social scene was not so great. It was lovely working with them all, however we never did any team building activities or spent much time together out of work. I don't know if this was just my department as I know of others who spent loads of time with their colleagues and became very close. I gave a 6/10 overall as I felt there could have been more social activities organised with my work colleagues.

In terms of living, I chose to live at home and commute as I was only a 20-minute drive away. This worked out very well and saved me a lot of money and a fair few other students did this so I did not feel like the odd one out. Socialising costs in the surrounding area are moderate: not as expensive as London but not ridiculously cheap either!

The new town in Stevenage is not particularly nice, however, the old town is very pretty nad has some nice bars and restaurants. To be honest, the other students make the experience the best! You would not go to Stevenage for the night life but going out with other students was good fun anyway! Also, it takes 20 minutes to get into London on the train which is convenient.

Within my department we arranged quite regular activities after work on the weekdays. We went for a lot of meals, went to the pub etc, however this was down to us to sort out!