OSD Technologist (NPI) Review

When I was given projects of work to do, the placement while sometimes stressful was very rewarding and it felt like the work I did mattered. Whereas, when I had finished my big project, it felt like there was no work for me to do and that I was a loose end and getting in people's way, I also got bored at these times which lowered my enjoyment overall.

I felt valued by the colleagues within my team, I felt like they appreciated the work I had completed and understood when I was facing challenges which were preventing me from completing my work. I felt like I was less valued by people outside of my team, they would often complain as to why tasks had not complete despite the fact there had been several blockers, many out of my control which would prevent a certain task from being completed.

Within my team, I felt supported. Whenever I had an issue with something, I felt like I could go to managers within my team and escalate this. I also felt I could get support when completing work if I was unsure of something. If it was a priority, then I could go to someone who had the time and request help.

It depended on the day, when I had my big project ongoing, I would find days could be extremely busy but I would much prefer these days to the ones where I had little to do and would become bored. At times on placement I would really struggle mentally if I had little to do and it made me feel quite negative about my placement.

When I had task to complete, I was given a lot of responsibility. These tasks would be critical to continuing manufacture and it would be my responsibility to complete these. While this was the case, if I ever felt too over-whelmed or stressed, others in my team would assist me to make sure tasks were completed in the often tight timeline we were provided to complete the task.

I developed a lot in terms of soft skills which will be of great benefit to me in my final year of university and beyond. The technical knowledge I learnt while interesting and helpful if I were to pursue a career in pharmaceuticals but in terms of my degree where little of this content is covered, it wasn't as useful.

Most people in the office were friendly and would often engage in events such as leaving lunches and treats on birthdays. I felt welcome and everything was done to make me feel more comfortable in the office when I was struggling mentally and this was a huge help to me during the rest of my placement.

SRG, the contract company ensured that everything was in place before I started. But the contact from then on was very little. When I was having some mental health issues I found very little support as I could not access GSK resources as I was technically contract staff and SRG did little else to resolve the issue. I feel like continued support throughout the placement would greatly improve the placement in my eyes as I really struggled to get the help I needed/

For my role, I received all the training required to carry out all tasks necessary to the role. I felt like I could really fulfil my role due to this. They also encourage site visits to other GSK sites and visiting other departments. I feel like more time could have been dedicated to my personal development with a mentor as while I had check in, I didn't see them as beneficial to my personal development.

There is a potential to be fast-tracked on the future leader programme upon manager recommendation, outside of this I did not see anything else really pushed in terms of direct roles. I do not see myself coming back to this company immediately as there were some aspects of my time that I did not enjoy and would definitely like to pursue other option but I would have appreciated more knowledge on direct entry roles.

There is a lot of events to ensure that there are social opportunities to meet with other placement students by SRG/IP unite which helped with settling into the role/new area. There were also more internal events arranged between colleagues such as drinks and other social activities to get to know people.

The place I lived was very close to my work but as it is within commuting distance from London, this meant living costs were quite expensive. The wage is slightly higher for sites near or around London (London living wage) which I believe I greatly benefitted from but I still think the area is quite pricey and is a deterrent from returning to the area.

The nightlife in the are was made up of a few pubs and bars, there was no where really to go on a night out, you would have to travel further to go on a night out. While this is possible and there are train links, this has the extra expense of public transport and the times of these services.

There were organised socal events including Christmas parties and boat parties, as a team we also locally organised events after work. But as there was little in the area this would often involve travelling out of the area which led to some difficulty getting there and back as the train links are limited.