Analytical industrial placement student Review

The team I was welcomed into worked on a variety of exciting projects which I enjoyed learning the background to. The people I worked with were very passionate about their roles and it reminded me of how real an impact our work had on many people's lives.

Despite everyone having a very busy schedule, people would always be more than happy to put time aside for me whether to answer my questions, discuss my personal development or help me in the lab.

When I first arrived I underwent an extensive training course, giving me the skills I needed throughout the year. My supervisor was there to support me in the lab for the first month or so and then allowed me to become more independent. I always felt comfortable asking both my manager and supervisor for support when needed.

For the first quarter of the year my workload fluctuated on a daily basis due to the nature of our team's projects. But then as the year progressed and as my confidence grew I began to pick up more tasks and my calendar soon filled up. Working during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic was a particularly busy time because I also contributed to a team who's work was classed as 'business critical'.

As part of the year I carried out a 10 week independent project for which i was responsible for delivering. I was able to control the direction of the project as it progressed and shared my learnings with the relevant people. Outside of the project I worked on several pieces of GMP analysis as part of release and stability testing for drug products being sent to the clinic.

The technical analytical skills learnt over this year are highly transferrable and could be used in many different fields. Method development has improved my problem solving skills since not everything went to plan first time. My work ethic has improved which will certainly help as I return to my last few years of University. I've experienced what it's like to be part of a professional working environment which has boosted my confidence in reaching out to people in more senior positions.

My team was very focussed and under significant pressure to deliver under very tight deadlines. There were moments where light conversation would crop up, about the rain, or debates over the thermostat etc). We had several social events over the first half of the year and then proceeded to arrange virtual coffee dates during COVID. The atmosphere was always comfortable in that I was always happy to approach others in the office.

Leading up to the placement I was given a timeline of when I could expect to hear from AZ regarding details of my placement and all of these were on time. Once I arrived I was handed a timetable with details of my training course which was easy to follow. I had regular catch-up meetings with my supervisor to discuss my experiences and talk about my personal development. AZ also organised regular chemistry classes to keep our synthetic chemistry minds fresh whilst being away from university.

AZ take personal development and training seriously and I made sure to make the most of the opportunities the company had to offer. They had a system for signing up to a huge variety of workshops and classes, from presentation skills to statistics. I was trained in various analytical skills which I used throughout the year.

Very. AZ offers fantastic Graduate Schemes and I would be eager to apply for a permanent role here once I graduate.

There was approximately 20 placement students this year which gave plenty of opportunity to make new friends and socialise outside of work. Macclesfield has many bars and restaurants with live music which make a fun evening.

Macclesfield offers a variety of housing costs - it really depends on where you stay and what kind of place it is. I lived in a three bedroom flat in the centre of Macclesfield and lived comfortably off of my AZ salary. The bars are relatively expensive to what I'm used to but not extortionate.

If you're into bars and pubs then it is excellent. If you're into clubbing then it's pretty poor. Macclesfield has one club although Manchester is only a 20 minute train away.

Yes, the local academy offers different classes. I joined a local lacrosse club. Macclesfield has its own Park Run which goes ahead every Saturday morning and always has a friendly atmosphere.