Industrial Placement Student Review

I really enjoyed my placement at AstraZeneca (Cambridge), it was a wonderful 12 month experience of research. I was in the lab almost every day and had full control of my experiments and time. Everyone was very helpful in introducing us to how to conduct research but also supported independent work as we understood what we were doing. In my building there were 6 other placement students so we had people our own age to relate to as well as the full time staff.

I felt highly valued by my colleagues - everyone was very welcoming and kind, they were very inclusive and supportive. They would always make sure I knew what was going on and offering help all the time. They would often shown me alternative methods in the lab if something of mine was not working out but they were also very inclusive out of the lab.

I was fully supported by my supervisor, she helped me plan my weeks to maximise my time and experimental plans. She was always available to answer questions whether academic or research. She was highly invested in my research so this helped a lot and she was very patient teaching me everything in the lab.

Some days I would be flat out busy in the lab (9-5) and others I would be fairly bored analysing data in the office however this is essential work and could have been avoided by better planning of day to day experiments. I did feel overwhelmed by the volume of work I had to do at times but I did still enjoy it.

I was given fully responsibility of my placement. Although my supervisor had a plan for my research I was in charge of delivering the research and experiments myself. Once I had learnt an experimental procedure my supervisor was very happy for me to repeat and conduct new experiments following the protocol independently.

I have developed a huge range of skills and training that I would not have received at my university. I have learnt how to question research papers, and how to analyse high inputs of my own data. I have developed a deeper understanding of a detailed area of research which hopefully will help in my final year at university.

the atmosphere was always very warm and welcoming however it was recognised as a work space. The kitchen area was always very chilled with people having breaks or informal meetings and there were often social events (2x a month) for everyone.

Very well organised - good induction and quick training, good meetings throughout the year to ensure progress was okay, opportunities for us to show are work to a range of people, quickly integrated into the social elements of the work force.

AstraZeneca was often keen for us to take any development and training when it was offered to us as long as it did not take too much of our time that we should have been working. They host weekly meetings to learn more about the company and different areas of the research and business.

I would love to work for AstraZeneca again, they do not just hire people for having done the placement year however, rather they acknowledge the 12 months worth of research as a huge bonus. The only jobs they offer at this point in our careers is the graduate scheme which is highly competitive or a post PhD job.

AZinspire is set up for the industrial placement students, graduate scheme people, and new starters and is very active in both social and science events. From this large global organisation I have made many good friends.

Cambridge is an expensive place to live. A room in a house is easily £500 a month without bills and food and drink is expensive if eating out (cheapest pint of beer is around £4).

Nothing in Little Chesterford where Hodgkin is based however Cambridge does have many pubs and a few clubs which are significantly more busy during student term time.

There are a lot of AstraZeneca sports teams and discounts on other sports teams/meals out. Although these may take some finding they are good fun.