Hospital Commercial Marketing Undergraduate Review

I have thoroughly enjoyed my whole placement year. I enjoyed working in a busy and vibrant office environment where breaks and healthy working is encouraged and opportunities to mix with and learn from a wide range of colleagues is facilitated. After working from home during the second half due to Covid- 19, work has still been enjoyable as there is a broad range of projects to work on and virtual chats allow colleagues to stay connected.

I felt really valued by the majority of my team members, especially my manager. I was given meaningful jobs that considered my professional development aspirations as well as roles vital to the functioning of the team as a whole. I appreciate how as an undergrad I was given respect parallel to full time colleagues and sharing of ideas and opinions was encouraged. To further improve this I would encourage all colleagues in a team to take time to understand the role and goals of undergrads to fully value their contribution.

My manager was fully supportive in day to day projects as we would regularly check in on progress of a project and see if I needed any help. They were also great with pro actively discussing my development and future career aspirations and modelling projects around those as well as arranging attendance on great courses. My manager and I were able to have an open dialogue where problems could be shared and solutions created, making me feel fully supported.

Work fluctuated depending on projects. During some weeks if there was a tight deadline I was very busy especially when I had multiple projects on the go. However, there were troughs in work load especially since working from home as colleagues were very busy with work that couldn't be delegated to me. Overall, I would say that there is mostly a good balance where I had enough work to do but wasn't overloaded or stressed and could've done with a bit more.

I was given an expected level of responsibility, where I was able to complete important tasks and projects but reported to my manager where risk was involved. I was responsible for my own time management and meeting deadlines, which was great as I wasn't constantly shadowed and was able to self- motivate. I was also responsible for proactively finding the answers to my questions before going to colleagues to ask for help, which made me pro active in finding solutions

I believe this placement year has developed the skills I already possessed such as analytical, presenting, communication, time management and multi- tasking as well as expanded my skillset in use of office programmes and understanding of processes. Whilst marketing is not so applicable to my science degree, the training and insight into the pharma industry and skills developed can all be carried forward. Furthermore, the training has improved my confidence to put myself forward in my degree opportunities and jobs.

The office atmosphere was more relaxed than I expected in a large company. Regular breaks were encouraged, with colleagues taking walks and coffees together to de- stress. Everyone is friendly and encourages opportunities and career progression. The layout of the office is very social which is reflected in the atmosphere. Whilst being relaxed, it is obvious people are busy but this doesn't translate to a tense environment. Also, the office is very progressive, with several groups addressing equality, eco- friendliness, cross generational working or more, which feels very positive and accepting.

Very well organised, undergraduate onboarding was very well organised and answered any questions before we even started. There is a range of training experiences set up for placement students including core training necessary at the very start to growth experiences throughout the year. Lots of guidance and resources are given to managers to ensure everyone is on the same page. HR were very supportive, organised and responsive. I like the fact that the y are constantly trying to improve to organise the next years placement.

As a baseline I was provided with several face to face training courses on presentation skills and marketing as this was applicable to my role. Furthermore, my manager was able to enrol me on an extensive marketing course which is usually reserved for full time colleagues which was great as it showed a belief and enthusiasm for my development by investing in courses that developed my skills that were both applicable to my role and also to my personal aims.

There is a grad scheme, however this is only for marketing and sales and so excludes some placement students with different interests. It is such a large company with many functions and roles, also there is lots of colleague movement between roles as they are encouraged to gain broad experience. This is appealing as roles are not stagnant and career progression is encouraged. I'd therefore say future employment prospects are very appealing however connections are important to facilitate entry to jobs.

The social scene was great, there were 50+ students on placement that mostly lived in the same area and all met through the introduction days. We went out a lot together during weekends which was nice as it facilitated a good work/ life balance. Also, colleagues would often go for lunch together during work and sometimes go out after work which was really nice as we got to know each other and talk about things other than work.

The cost of living in Surrey was higher as it was down south but cheaper than living in London. My accommodation was very expensive for what was provided - a tip I have for future students is to look for housing as soon as possible as often the better accommodation goes quickly, especially when the students all lived in the same area. Socialising was average priced, not cheap but not super expensive and there was lots of outdoor space to do non- expensive activities.

As I lived and worked in Surrey, the nightlife was not amazing as it is rather quiet in the small towns and so bars or nightclubs were few and very small. However, there were local pubs and bars that were fun to go to with the other students- as there were so many of us this created a lively atmosphere. I was about 40 minutes away from central London on the train and so was able to go there on occassion where there are more bars and clubs that are livelier.

Yes, we are encouraged to take up to 5 volunteering days, which can be taken with your team or individually during the work week but outside of work so able to volunteer with charities close to you. Also opportunity to get involved with sports teams and local runs as well as team activities after work such as a meal or drinks which was great because it allowed me to develop more personal relationships with my colleagues.