EU and International Regulatory Policy Review

I enjoyed the placement greatly. This was both because of the positive environment I was working in and the type of work I was undertaken. There were many undergraduate placements at the same site, which massively impacted the experience of my placement, both whilst I was at work and in evenings and weekends. As well as the undergraduates, colleagues were friendly and easy to talk to and connect with.

Colleagues both within in my team and in general were very friendly. Especially the close team took time to get to know me we became closer over the year. Unfortunately there were few 'team bonding' experiences to speed or enhance the process of this. Though the year however, I do not think this ultimately made a difference.

My supervisor ensured I had close support throughout the year and was very approachable if I had any issue, either small or large. They worked with me both on task specific guidance as well as leading me in general through the role and workplace etiquette. I felt very supported during my placement.

The role was quite variable, meaning some days would be very busy and some fairly quiet. Overall I usually had a reasonable level of work and was please with this. Additionally, if I had capacity for more work or a new project, I could communicate this to my manger to pick up additional tasks.

Due to the nature of the role, a lot of learning was required, and it took a few months to feel like I had gained any responsibility other than for low level tasks. However this did progress to increasing responsibility over the year. Overall the role was more supporting of others activates with some instances of responsibility slowly growing through the year.

My written communication skills for extended writing were used and improved through the year, this will be valuable in university essays and coursework. The soft office skills developed, such as effective email writing, how to lead a meeting and formal communication will be useful when starting a graduate role. Specific training, such as for presentation skills was provided, which will help me throughout my education and career.

The general atmosphere was friendly. The number of people in the office could vary greatly though the weeks and months. For example, it was much quieter during the summer and on Fridays. Colleagues were friendly, and there was always a group of undergraduates eating lunch together which was positive for us.

Within the department, it was well organised for the undergraduate students. There was departmental training, and regular catch ups to learn from other students in the department and receive support and guidance. However this was very varied across the company, it depended totally on the team or department, and there was very little organisation by HR.

The company gave opportunities for training and development. There was personal support and development with my supervisor. Additionally students were encouraged to make the most of any training opportunities. This included presentation , process simplification, and drug development training, which were all valuable. Training opportunities varied greatly between departments and teams.

There is a graduate programme that all placement students can apply to. However this is only in the commercial business units, and there are a very limited number of places. If students want to work in an alternative function, there are very limited future employment prospects as the minimum experience required is often much greater than one placement year.

There were around 80 undergraduates so there were many people to socialise with, and the students got quite close throughout the year. Most didn't know anyone before starting, so we were all in the same boat. However sometimes people would be away at weekends, so social activity could vary quite a bit.

The placement was based in Surrey which is a more expensive area than many university towns, therefore there was an adjustment for living costs (£450-600 per person per month for rent) and socialising costs (around £5 pint). However, as we were all earning, this was manageable for most people over the year.

Locally there was very limited nightlife. Pubs were the highlight, with some nice pub gardens that we could go to after work in the summer. However bars and clubs were limited and not particularly lively. London is not far, and this would be the most common option for a night out (although soon expensive, once travel is counted).