Associate Clinical Development Manager Review

I thoroughly enjoyed my work placement at GlaxoSmithKline. Not only did I gain valuable technical experience, I also had the opportunity to develop numerous key skills such as communication, time management, leadership and organisational skills. GSK offered opportunities outside of your day to day roles and responsibilities such as STEM, the WLI and Site events which gave me experience in different areas. I would highlight recommend a placement at GSK to anyone in the future.

From the moment I came to GSK, I felt a warm welcome and valued by my colleagues. Although it was a slow start, completing trainings and getting to know my manager, work started to open and I was involved in various opportunities. This helped me develop technical skills that I could utilise later in my placement. My team valued my work and contributions and worked with me on numerous occasions. I felt like I made a great contribution to GSK.

Throughout my placement I was given quality guidance and management by my manager. Not only did this include advise on how to complete my work and deal with problems that arose in relation to that, it also included advise on personal development, networking and softer skills that are equally important. I was also given the opportunity to gain independence on my projects, meaning I developed leadership skills although my manager was there when I needed help.

I was usually quite busy on a daily basis. I had projects and work to complete as the weeks went on. I was also involved in multiple extra-curricular activities such as being the WLI Finance Lead, STEM event coordinator and I was on the Site events committee. Whenever I was lacking work, I could speak to my manager and we would organise me to become involved in different work opportunities. I therefore received a broad experience.

The level of responsibility I was given during my placement rose as time went on. At the start of my placement, I was supervised throughout most of my tasks whilst I learnt technical skills. However, I was gradually given more and more responsibility until I led my own small-scale project. This was handling the Vendor supply shipment and platform access process. This allowed me to develop my leadership skills as well as communication and time management. I would have lived to take on a little bit more responsibility however because my study was a large one, this wasn't appropriate.

The skills I have developed will definitely help me in the future with regard to a job. Although it probably wont help with my university work too much, skills such as professionalism, communication, teamwork, leadership etc will help drastically when I enter the world of work after university. This experience was invaluable in this respect. Trainings will also help me if I were to return to GSK as I understand the process and ways if working.

The general atmosphere in my office was good one. Although people were always very busy and needed to get on with work, people were always up for a chat and to get to know each other. We often had short breaks to talk and meet new people which really helped. There was always a positive spirit and upbeat attitude. I am very grateful to have worked at a company with a high morale and great attitude.

The work placement was extremely well organised. Upon arrival, I was immediately welcomed and talked through the process of my placement. I was given time to complete trainings, tasks were provided for me to do at appropriate times, everyone knew we were here and what we were doing and groups were set-up to help us. After speaking with my friends who were on other placements, the GSK set up was very good compared. I am very impressed.

The company did not invest too much into the placement students in regard to money, although we could join various extra-curricular groups such as STEM and joining the WLI who hosted various events. However GSK did pay us a salary which can be classed as investing in us. A lot of the trainings and development opportunities were free or already existing that GSK employees utilised during their employment. In the form of being granted money to develop, there wasn't any of this.

Future employment prospects are very appealing within the organisation. During my time at GSK I has the opportunity to network and speak with multiple different individuals in various different departments. This allowed me to explore the different roles and areas within GSK and helped me develop some interests. I also learnt about different entry routes into GSK such as the FLP. However, it does seem to be a very busy and time-consuming place to work.

There was a good social side between some of my fellow placements. I was fortunate enough to make a best friend and a few more really great friends during my time at GSK with similar interests and personalities. However, there were also some placement students who weren't very similar to other people and this caused a few disagreements and negative attitudes. Different interests and goals may have caused tension and opposing attitudes towards life and the year.

The cost of living in my area was high. I lived in Ealing which was regarded as quite an expensive area and a large proportion of my salary went on renting a room in a house. In addition, the cost of socialising was also very high. It was sometimes difficult to enjoy social time due to this expense. However, we understood what to expect as London prices will always be higher than anywhere else in the country.

The nightlife was not great in the area I worked. In Stockley park there were very few pubs and bars, and no clubs. Where I lived in ealing, there were a few more bars and pubs but these were also very expensive. We could get the train into London centre, but this would take a lot of time and may put a lot of people off. Going to socialise at a pub, bar or club wasn't very common because of this

There were various opportunities to get involved in activities outside of work, but this depends on what is classed as 'work' If work is regarded as study work, then there were various extra curricular activities such as WLI, STEM and site events. If work is just the time spent in the office, there weren't many opportunities outside of work, although we did manage to be invited to play football by some of the GSK staff.