Undergraduate Industrial Placement Student Review

I spent most days with at least some hands-on lab time, culturing cells, running assays or setting up automation platforms. The remainder of the day I spent attending team, department or company meetings, reading literature relevant to my project in order to design, plan and execute experiments, analysing data and results, then writing up previous experiments.

Many. Especially practical lab skills and scientific writing skills. However I have also significantly improved my communication, social interaction and presentation skills, as well as my confidence in tackling scientific problems and putting forward my ideas to peers. I feel I have grown in initiative throughout the placement, and have gained resilience in handling scientific problems.

I was given a lot of responsibility over my own project work, less so at first while I was learning new techniques and familiarising myself with equipment, but as the placement progressed I was given much of the responsibility for its running. I had lots of opportunities to plan my own experiments, and lots of help from supervisors to refine them and make sure they were fit for purpose.

There were so many helpful people throughout my placement, the department as a whole was very close-knit with everybody collaborating across projects all the time. I was also part of a smaller team within the department who get together weekly to discuss their experiments which provides a forum for discussion and advice. I then also had a dedicated supervisor who I also met with every week to plan experiments and discuss data.

The culture is very supportive; it breeds collaboration and offers many opportunities for personal development. Day-to-day, the department was very social and friendly, I never got the feeling that I had no one to turn to, people always had their doors open for questions or a chat. In the wider company, there was a lot of engagement, especially with sharing science and for people to talk about their projects and experiences.

I have loved my placement with AstraZeneca. I feel I have learnt an incredible amount in a relatively short space of time, and have grown significantly as a scientist. The team I worked with have been supportive and friendly throughout and I have definitely made some friends for life. It has accelerated my passion for science and I cannot wait to join an industry such as this when I finish university.

Yes

Give it your best shot. Read up on the company beforehand, and about the research areas they are involved in. Speak to previous students about their experiences and projects for what to expect (this definitely helped me a lot!). During the application process be honest and sell yourself, be passionate about the industry and about science, and show them your skills.