Sandwich placement student Review

My placement was very enjoyable as I was able to get involved in a lot of varied things and always had a lot of different work to do.

I felt like an important part of my team and my data was added to many slide sets and I had the opportunity to present it to many people. The people in my office were very friendly.

I had a supervisor who I would meet up with regularly to discuss what I had done and where I should be aiming. My supervisor also gave me contact details for people who may be able to help further with my project. My line manager was also helpful.

I was fairly busy and got involved in a large number of things. It is very easy to get involved in something else if you ask about it.

I had my own project to work on within the group so I was able to take responsiblility for all of the work that I was doing on this project. I also got involved in data analysis of other important data.

I did my placement as part of my fourth and final year at University and learnt a wide range of research skills as well as many other practical skills such as time keeping, research reading and scientific writing. These skills helped me to aquire a graduate placement at AstraZeneca.

The general atmosphere was calm, friendly and approachable. Everyone was more than willing to help out if there was a problem.

The work placement was fairly organised, but each student was placed in a different office and department so may have experienced different organisations within departments.

I had a lot of one on one teaching sessions with my supervisor in order to learn the wide range of skills. I was able to practice a lot in the laboratory.

I am currently still working at AstraZeneca as a graduate student, which was an extremely appealing scheme as you get to carry out three different 8 month rotations throughout the company. Future jobs at AstraZeneca also look appealing.

There is a great social scene, especially with the AZ freshers network that has been set up. This involves all placement students, graduates and new young starters at AstraZeneca and they put on a wide range of events and activities regularly during work hours and after work. It is a great way to meet other students.

Rent prices are fairly reasonable if you enter a room share. The prices of food, drink and taxis is also reasonable.

Most of the students live in the same area so there were always people going out. The area is full of nice bars and pubs.

There are many activities in the local area that are easy to get involved in such as the gym, and other sports such as swimming, badminton, tennis etc. Also being so close to the peaks allows for cycling, hiking, climbing and walking.