BPR Review

I thoroughly enjoyed my placement and was incredibly fortunate to end up in a fantastic department in GSK. The group were well led and very social – this made my integration into working life amazing. Additionally, my project work was interesting and I had the opportunity to always take responsibility leading my own novel experiments.

My colleagues always went to great effort to ensure I felt comfortable and content with my experience. Both my academic/project support and pastoral support were second-to-none. I had weekly meetings with academic supervisors and pastoral supervisors. I had the platform to discuss my work with FTEs at many occasions, and it was invaluable to have feedback from experts in this field.

My manager and supervisors were always supportive – they frequently checked on me to ensure I was handling the workload. The team were very encouraging and helpful regarding project management. Upon experiencing experimental complications, I would always be encouraged to get advice for fixing this which was much appreciated. I believe this help led me to get the most out of my placement.

There was a real mixture… Some days towards the start of my placement were quite slow; however, upon undergoing my training many days were very intense. They required early starts and often ended late too. This wasn’t an issue as I enjoyed the work, but admittedly it was difficult to manage sometimes. On the bright side, the lab exposure I had has provided myself a good insight of a research based career.

I was in control of my own experiments. I would plan experiments myself, then discuss the plans with supervisors, before executing the work. The subsequent analysis was also performed by myself, and it was great to see the work wholly done by myself from start to finish. I felt so privileged to have had the opportunity to conduct such work. My team were fantastic for putting such belief in me.

I developed so many skills during my time at GSK – notably interpersonal skills from the myriad of meetings, and analytical skills from experimental data. The skills I developed will be instrumental for helping my final year of university. I have developed an ability to convey scientific data/information to others which is very transferable. I have also developed an analytical eye, improving my ability to scrutinise lab data and primary literature.

The office was always buzzing and full of people prior to the site closure (for the pandemic). People were always coming for conversations, both relating to work and for fun. It was a lovely atmosphere and I felt so fortunate to be there. The sitting area was arranged to allow hot-desking; however, the people sat around me were always the same. Was great atmosphere! Quiet when necessary to focus - and accepted for everyone to wear headphones.

The department were well established for having placement students; therefore, there understood all the requirements. They were great for setting up confidentiality agreements, sorting out time sheets, arranging training and providing introductions to different department members. It always felt organised during my beginning week, and following then, I provided my own organisation from my own meetings and work planned.

GSK always have internal training through a diverse range of lectures/webinars. Additionally, within the department there were training days to experience other functions. I had undertaken training in several techniques that I didn’t use – broadening my lab experience. The company also arranged for external vendors to visit site and provide training.

GSK is a fantastic organisation and recruits excellent individuals, and I would be privileged to join in the future. It’s a very friendly, yet results driven company, but they combine well. You get to learn a lot from great individuals and also get to learn about lots of internal hot areas. The company is very open and transparent.

There were over 100 placement students at GSK Stevenage which provided plenty of opportunity for socialising. Within, we arranged a football league at a local sports club, and I also plated squash on site with other students. The only issue was that cliques development within the first month, so it wasn’t as cohesive as I was expecting.

I was living nearby to site in Stevenage and the rent was extremely cheap considering it was just outside of London. The city of Stevenage isn’t the nicest though and most of the FTEs live in surrounding towns. There isn’t very much to do in Stevenage, but has good links to London. Old town is further away from site and more expensive – but it’s a lot nicer than new town.

Nightlife is awful when coming from university. There is no night time buzz, and doesn’t feel too safe at night. On the bright side, there is 2 Wetherspoons so always provides some local fun with other students. The most night fun I had was when having/visiting the homes of friends to chill. Going out to London doesn’t happen because nobody can be bothered (expensive, no trains after late).

Lots of social activities going on which was fun. Many IPs took part in a weekly football league which was very enjoyable. The sport center on site also provides the opportunity to play squash/basketball/volleyball outside of work. There are also several clubs in Stevenage to get involved with activites, like as Stevenage Spartans (running club).