Process Support - Industrial Placement Review

Very much enjoyed the placement on the whole. As with any good placement there will be a mixture of easier and more challenging times where it can feel there is a lot on. But it is satisfying when working to an important deadline to have the work complete which you know has made something possible. Feel as if I have learnt an astronomical amount which I will be able to apply through different jobs or if I am able to come back and work for GSK. There is also a genuine care for the work when you are fully aware you're team aids production of products which help people through life on a day to day basis.

I did feel well valued by my colleagues, some of the work I started on was very monotonous to begin with. This was for the first few months but it was a good learning start, following this responsibility sharply increased. People could see I was working on some important projects which in turn means that they do see value. Everyone in the team is very helpful and friendly throughout the entire year.

Unfortunately joining the department during a time where there is a recovery project meant that resource was stretched. This meant that it wasn't always easy to get much contact time with my manager and have had 3 during my time here (all of which I could have contacted for help). They all have been very supportive and if when I have needed to contact them it is clear they care and want to support as much as they can. Would have been good to be able to see them more in the office and have a regular performance review. It is good in a sense of building your independance, confidence and allowing more ownership over tasks.

Varied quite a lot. Some weeks I could be searching for work to do (wouldn't have to look too far). But because the projects I worked on meant that you were waiting for responses from other departments, or external contractors. It meant that you could get a rush of info to work on at the same time and suddenly there is a lot of work on. It was a pretty good balance and the more experience you get the more work you can do and the busier you can keep yourself. I found that after about the 4-5th month the work load started to creep up.

To begin with not a lot just doing basic admin tasks. Around 4-5 months in really picked up and I was given some tasks which originally was a bit apprehensive to take on given the responsibility involved. But I had the right support should I need it and gave me good work satisfaction. Responsibility will always be quite high no matter which department when working in a pharmaceutical manufacture facility.

In terms of my degree I have not really been able to apply much of it. The role I'm in is not engineering based so I was never expecting to go into it too much. However I have been able to work closely with the engineers on site so I understand a lot now about their procedures and how they operate. Definitely have enough insight to use the information for future interviews if I did want to pursue a technical route. For work skills, general organisation, communication and planning between departments etc. This role in particular has been very valuable due to the variety of work. It will help in my studies in terms of the ethic I've developed towards work.

Very good atmosphere in the office, haven't met a more friendly bunch of people. Very good community could not have really asked for a better balance between great knowledge and experience to good banter. The team are all really good at what they do and will generally go out of their way to point you in the right direction and help. For the placement student at the end of the year they do a leaving presentation and will have a team outing.

There is nothing in particular to outline what you will be working on as projects come up opportunities may arise to get on them. However this is a good stream of work and projects which are of reasonable responsibility levels for placement students to work on. Again at first in the beginning months it feels much looser in terms of what you're supposed to be doing. But once a few months in things begin to stabilise and you get a good idea of what you'll be doing throughout the year.

There was no external training or anything that a normal staff member wouldn't get. It does bug me that as GSK staff we are not employed by them and only by their third party contracting agency. This means that you miss out on employee perks like healthcare, share scheme, cycle to work scheme and more. As you recieve what general staff will do, there is a lot of training and development just nothing over the ordinary.

I would like to work for GSK but the graduate scheme for which I have applied for is very competitive so it is all dependant on the recruitment outcome. Few other placement students do get offered roles if they want to stay on and complete their degree with the company but this is mainly project engineering.

Yes and no. It depends on the person you are to how much you want to be involved. The site takes on around 10 placement students. We have never really arranged to do anything all together however there are smaller groups between us which we are good friends in. If people were more motivated to meet up there would be more social events between us.

In the area I work in Barnard Castle, rent is fairly high and socialising prices are normal. However I live in Darlington where cost of living is generally lower and their are cheaper places to go out. Nothing is out of the ordinary and it is a lot cheaper than anywhere in and around London.

Again in Barnard Castle where I work there is a night life but not so big. In Darlington where I live I have absolutely treasured the nightlife it is a good laugh, quite busy & big with a massive variety of people out. Plenty of bars and pubs to be able to go to.

Yes this year I have taken up golf as a result of people at work interesting me in the sport. Also many opportunities to go mounting biking with colleagues as well as road cycling. Quite a few people play sport on site such as squash and football so if you're looking for it there's more than enough to get involved in.