Computational Toxicologist Review

I enjoyed my placement greatly, both the challenge of learning new skills and completing work and also the opportunity to interact with people in a professional environment. I particularly enjoyed the opportunity to learn about the structural features associated with different toxicities and how this can pre determine toxicity in novel structures, this allowed me to see a side of toxicology that I wouldn't have been exposed to through my degree. Working in a professional environment for a full year gave me a real feel for what it would be like to work in the pharmaceutcal industry after I graduate and offered lots of opportunities to network with different departments.

I took on real work within the department assissting them in carrying out in silico assessments. This was valued highly as it helped a busy department run smoothly and get work done quickly and on time.

My manager was very supportive and was always there to answer questions, whether they be directly about work or about my placement year in general. The support given allowed me to develop and take on opportunities that I may otherwise not have been confident in getting involved in.

The work load varied week to week but in general I was quite busy everyday, there was always something to do even if it wasn't my main job role.

I was given a level of responsibility equal to my colleagues in terms of day to day work and also had the opportunity to work with other companies and go to a conference where I represented the department.

I have yet to return to university but I feel that the time management, self motivating and presentation skills I have practiced regularly throughout the year will prove invaluable to me in my last year of studies.

We were in a big open plan smart working office and so there was a lot of communication both intra and inter department, this was good as it created quite a happy communal atmosphere and assited in getting things done efficiently and easily.

It was all set up really well, from the organisation of the interview, to the familiarisation day to the development opportunities throughout the year. At no point did I feel like I didn't know what I needed to do next or what was expected of me.

A lot of time was put into giving me opportunities to develop such as conferences, working with other companies, shadowing other departments and organising trips to other sites.

Given the oportunity I would definitely work in the department or the safety assesment sector once I graduated.

There was quite a lot of students working on the same site so we had quite a lively social scene despite being based in quite a small town, it had the perk of being very close to London so day/ night trips out there were easy!!

The cost of living in Ware, Hertfordshire was very high in terms of rent, bills, food and travel though this didn't stop us from going out!

The nightlife ion the town we lived in wasn't great, there were quite a few good pubs but you had to vewnture further a field if you wanted a decent night out.

There were lots of sport opportunities going on at the sport and social club which was very cheap for employees.