Industrial Placement Student Review

Planning and executing experiments, data analysis, assay development, mass spectrometry. Some Python coding. Electronic lab notebook management. Literature review and writing for scientific publication. Team meetings. Also working within AZinspire as secretary - organising events and circulating invites, scheduling meetings and taking minutes, managing distribtion lists. Assisted in TH!NK Neurodiversity ERG in designing training resources and consulting on content.

Python coding, data analysis, use of specific software and scientific techniques (e.g. JMP, Prism, Genedata, Spotfire, mass spec, TR-FRET, FP). Developed ability to work flexibly and respond to results day-by-day. Improved communication skills and confidence in presenting to others.

My planned student project didn't happen because of problems sourcing equipment due to the pandemic. I was given projects that would usually be done by full-time employees, so had real responsibility for high-priority work. Because of the lack of structure due to being passed around projects, I didn't have much chance to develop autonomy since I was always learning new things, but I was solely responsible for whatever work I was assigned, I just often had to ask my supervisor for significant help in working out how to approach it.

I could ask for help and support from my supervisor at any time and receive it. We discussed at the start of the placement whether structured check-ins would be necessary or whether I would prefer to request help only if I needed it, which was what I opted for. Some of my work was with a department other than my own and in that project I felt like I didn't have much support, but this was because my supervisor was equally new to the field and couldn't help. I had very minimal contact with my line manager (almost exclusively when I was ill or my supervisor was away) but he was very understanding of any concerns I had and let me work from home for two months rather than return to the office because of my anxiety around COVID. I rarely spoke to my team but attended weekly meetings and whenever I asked for help they were very helpful - I don't feel like I really built any relationships but that is more the fault of the pandemic and me keeping to myself a lot (I am autistic and find the 'meeting new people' stage difficult even outside of a pandemic). The AZinspire committee and events were a nice source of connection and more social support - it helped to have a community of other placement students/early talent who I felt able to be a bit more open and chatty with.

I was impressed with the EDI (equality, diversity and inclusion) groups set up across the company - I was able to get involved with things to do with LGBTQ+ pride and neurodiversity advocacy. There seemed to be a lot of resources for education on these sorts of issues and the teams involved in producing them were really responsive to suggestions and feedback. I joined a nonbinary group with the Pride Science Alliance which was advertised internally at AZ, and this has been really nice for affirming my identity in a professional setting. That being said, nobody at AZ seems to understand processes like Access to Work and reasonable workplace adjustments for disabled employees are all handled on a very informal basis, which meant I was constantly unaware of who had disclosed my disability to who (as this happened multiple times without my consent, including inappropriately at the hiring stage). On a personal level everybody was lovely and supportive, but the systems in place aren't necessarily great. My team tried to be social once restrictions allowed, however I didn't feel comfortable joining in because of the pandemic. My team feels quite friendly and close-knit, although lots of new people joined while I was here too. I did get a sense sometimes in the office/lab of being a bit invisible at times, and I did feel some separation from other employees as a student, although I think that's probably because I didn't reach out much or initiate conversation in the first place.

I have enjoyed my placement. Considering the state of the world, I was surprised that I could get as much out of it as I did. The non-scientific experiences (volunteering in committees etc.) were an unexpected highlight and while I found some of the projects I worked on very stressful, I'd definitely want to return to AZ in future with a bit more experience to ease the learning curve. The job itself suited me well and used skills I was interested in, and I felt appreciated for the work that I did. As a person who falls into several marginalised groups I was pleased to see how much my input into EDI was valued even as a temporary worker, and the EDI initiatives all felt genuine rather than performative, which can be a rarity with companies.

Yes

Values are very important at AZ so research their values online. At interview I was asked how I would respond to a certain situation, and the point of the question was to see how I justified my answer, rather than whether I responded 'correctly'.