Industrial Trainee Review

I've worked in R&D and enjoyed my placement very much. I had a chance to explore a completely new, interdisciplinary area of research. It was a fantastic learning experience and at the same time I feel I've made a significant, original contribution.

The environment is very friendly and I could approach anyone for help or guidance. Also, my skills were recognized and I was approached by a a colleague to help them in their research. I've had a chance to organize and give a talk about a few innovative ideas for science. I will also be presenting my work to colleagues in a variety of forms over the next few weeks.

I've been given sufficient guidance and support. I could always approach my supervisor to discuss ideas. Perhaps the placement would be more productive if we collaborated more closely on the problem.

I was solely responsible for managing my time, which worked very well. As my work didn't depend on anyone else's and there were few deadlines, I had to control the project timeline myself, which was a very constructive experience.

I had significant influence on the course of the research project. Brain-storming with my supervisor was always very useful and enabled me to understand what their vision of the project would be and what my priorities should be. I was solely responsible for implementation of those ideas and making conclusions from the experiments.

I've developed a range of skills which will be very useful in my future career and possibly also in my master's project. I've gained a lot of perspective on conducting research and feel more competent in doing this independently.

There was a very friendly and relaxed atmosphere which allowed me to do my work at my own pace and without any stress. There were many opportunities for colleagues to socialize.

The induction was seamless and there were many opportunities to find out more about how the company works (talks by people from different departments, guided tours around labs).

Due to the specificity of my research, there were not many training opportunities organized but I could use my own time to do this from other sources (online, books, journals). Some of us had also fees for an on-site conference covered. This was a very insightful event.

The placement gives me a very good position to apply for graduate roles in this or another company. I'll be looking at a different kind of jobs after I graduate, but my experience here will be very valuable.

Very much.

Fairly cheap. What's more, this area of the UK is very under-rated and you can have an amazing time here.

There were always some good options to spend time.

Yes, there were interesting volunteering opportunities with the company.