Industrial Placement Student Review

I work on managing our CRC software, helping all international users gain access to the tool and resolve with any issues they are experiencing. I support the incentive compensation process, working on the pay-outs for the Key Account Managers. I complete data stewardship tasks across disease areas relating to customer data in our CRM. I also complete adhoc tasks for other teams.

I have developed my existing Microsoft Office skills, especially for PowerPoint and Excel. I have equally developed my soft skills, particularly presenting. I now feel comfortable presenting in front of key stakeholders from all functions. New skills I've developed include all the new software I have had to master in order to complete my role, as well as my business writing.

At the outset I did not have much responsibility, but by the mid-point I had acquired sufficient knowledge to pick up business critical tasks and projects. Some were frequently occurring, repeated tasks I had to complete, others were one of jobs that needed to be completed. However, I always had the ability to reach out to my manager for support.

I received a lot of guidance and support at the outset, and throughout. I was given a detailed onboarding to get to grips with the company and its operations. As I developed I was assisted with new tasks until I was comfortable. I was however, given the space to explore and develop where I wanted to.

The company culture felt very inclusive and familial. Everyone at Vertex is striving within their role to help get life changing therapies to patients. However, this was balanced with a focus on employee wellness.

I thoroughly enjoyed my placement. I experienced many firsts and almost all of them were positives. I developed personally and professionally and made some great friends. I was challenged and have developed acquired some skills that I will take with me into my final year of study and my professional career.

Yes

Don't shy away from your weaknesses. Highlight them, and explain how you plan to work on them during your time at Vertex. Also, take your time to check with the company ethos aligns with your own. If it does, this will show during interviews and definitely help your application.