Industrial Trainee Review

Frequently I found senior colleagues coming to ask how my work was going and showing a genuine interest. This made me feel like my work was important and that I was valued by the company. My supervisors also encouraged me to voice my opinions and contribute to discussions on what direction my project work would take.

I had two supervisors from different areas of expertise in the department. Both of them were very supportive throughout the year and understood that I was also completing my final year at university. They were very approachable and always encouraged me to voice my opinions. This also applies for the wider management team.

There was plenty to do and it was up to me to get as much done as I could. This enabled me to really work hard and impress my supervisors with the quantity as well as the quality of my work. There were lots of different opportunities to do/learn other things and therefore it is up to you how busy you are.

There are opportunities at Pfizer to be involved in as either just a member or something more. Therefore, it is dependent on you how responsible you are during the year.

It was the skills that I developed here that enabled me to get a position with another company, which I start at the end of this placement. I was able to apply my chemistry knowledge and combine the skills I had learnt at university with the work that I was doing. This year helped me grow in confidence as a scientist both in and out of the lab.

Because they have undergraduates coming in every year, it was a quick and smooth transition. There were meetings to inform you of the benefits of the company so that you can make the most of your time here as well as encouragement to get to know your new colleagues (particularly other students) which helped me settle in very quickly.

Whatever the Pfizer full time employees are offered, the undergraduates are offered the same. This includes all the basic training of health and safety both in and out of the lab as well as the opportunity to learn more about different areas of the company. There were also training sessions to broaden your knowledge on different areas of pharmaceuticals (e.g. biopharmaceutics or formulation).

It is heavily dependent on what roles are available at the time.

There were fairly frequent meetings for the undergraduates and apprentices. This brought everyone together from different departments to get to know each other. The undergraduates all got on really well and most of us lived in the same area. We frequently saw one another, the apprentices and other colleagues in our departments outside of working hours.

I thought both the cost of living and socialising was reasonable. There was a wide range of properties to rent and nearly all of the big supermarkets are in the Ramsgate/Broadstairs area. The price of petrol isn’t bad and there are frequent bus services around Thanet and in the Sandwich direction.

Like most places, the quality of the night is heavily dependent on the people going out. Ramsgate and Broadstairs both have places that span a wide range of venue type (e.g. pub, bar etc.). For a more ‘student’ night out, Canterbury is the place to go (20 minutes on the train). I enjoyed the nightlife in the area in all three towns.

There are lots of activities available. The most common are STEM events. This is to increase the interest of children in science. The events vary from teaching a class, conducting an assembly, career fairs to leading an activity on an open day. These activities are aimed at both primary and secondary school aged children. You are able to choose which events you would like to take part in as well as how many.