Placement student Review

I am really glad I did this work placement. I got the opportunity to work with a wide range of people, and appreciated learning about so many aspects of research and drug development. It has improved my abilities in presenting and speaking, critical thinking, data analysis, as well as many other things.

I had a very supportive and friendly team. We met regularly to catch-up on how we were doing, and often celebrated people's birthdays together, with plenty of cake! We also got the opportunity to volunteer for a day as a team, which was really enjoyable. I presented my work in team meetings like any other team member, and indeed felt like a valued part of the team.

My supervisor was very supportive throughout my placement. They always responded to any questions and met regularly with me to catch-up on how I was doing. They allowed me independence in my work, to pursue the aims of our project in the way I felt best, but always supported me when I needed it.

I always had plenty to do - a never-ending to-do-list in fact! But I never compromised a work-life balance. I often had to prioritise, if tasks took longer than anticipated, and my supervisor recognised this and supported my decisions if I felt certain tasks were taking too long, or if I felt we should refocus our priorities at all.

I had a fair degree of responsibility and independence in this placement. My supervisor supported me and helped direct me - but I was free to work and prioritise according to my evaluation of the project, and was independent in much of my work and analysis. I was also given responsibility to arrange meetings and prepare slide-decks, as part of our collaborations with other people in the company.

I feel I have greatly improved in confidence - I have met a wide range of people, presenting our project and arguing our thoughts and opinions and collaborating with them. I have learnt alot about communication in a professional environment - about how to obtain what I want to out of a meeting, how to engineer a meeting to be successful. These are very transferrable skills. I have also improved in technical skills relating specifically to my project.

We worked in an open plan office, adjacent to laboratories. I was friendly with the people working around me. I sat near another placement student, and we often walked to get tea together. I was able to sit and focus on my work, and did not have any problems in the office. Once a month, the whole company met for free food, which was often a highlight for us all.

I had no problems with the organisation of the work placement. I received pay in addition to salary to support with relocation. We had an intern day a few months before the placement, from which some placement students formed groups to rent houses - including a house which was passed down from previous placement students the year before. We also had a training day when we first started. There was also a shuttle bus from the city to our workplace, which the company funded tickets for.

There was an organisation run by students/apprentices/etc. that enabled us to learn about various aspects of the company, as well as career-related content. There were talks given on different job roles which were really interesting, as well as topical science. There was also plenty of opportunity to present work, including a large presentation at the end of our placement to across the company to talk about results of our projects.

I am not aware of placement students receiving jobs within the company because of their placement - although they were amneable to providing placement extensions (e.g. by a few months). There are also other graduate opportunities in the organisation, so if I wanted to work further with them, I would apply to those schemes.

We had a student/apprentice/etc run group that arranged social events (e.g. BBQs, punting). There was free food available at the end of each month, where people congregated at the end of the work day, which was nice. We often celebrated birthdays together, and I enjoyed spending time with my fellow students and colleagues - like going for walks around the park where our buildings are during lunch breaks.

I was based in Cambridge, so the cost of rent was typical to that area - I paid about £560 per month for a room in a nice house with a few others, which I felt was a reasonable price for the area. It is cheaper than e.g. London, but obviously alot more expensive than other areas. I was quite frugal when socialising, but did often punt as we were able to get this subsidised through the company, so it was incredibly cheap.

The nightlife was not particularly my area of interest!

Yes - we were able to go on volunteering days as a team, and on social events arranged by the student/apprentice led group