Technician Scientist Apprentice Review
at AstraZeneca
Higher Level Apprenticeship
Science
Cambridge
Review Submitted: April 2023
Overall Rating
4.4 /5
The Overall Rating is the average of all the ratings given in each category. We take those individual ratings and combine them into one final score!
4/5
-
Overview of Role
4/5
-
Skills Development
4.4/5
-
Structure and Support
Overview of Role
Please give an overview of your role and what this involves on a day-to-day basis:
4/5
Varied lab work, time split approx. 50% office involving planning experiments, preparing/giving presentations including of data, university study, meetings, emails etc; and then ~50% time spent in the the lab on a variety of practical lab techniques to support bioscience projects.
To what extent do you enjoy your programme?
4/5
Generally highly.
Skills Development
Have you learnt any new skills or developed existing skills?
4/5
Practical lab skills continually developing; new lab techniques being learnt. Non lab skills such as organisation always developing and responsibilities increasing.
Structure and Support
How well organised/structured is your programme?
5/5
Organisation and structure are very good, including on the academic side with the UoK since they improved their apprenticeship services (getting more AP advisors, improving email communications etc) a couple of years ago.
How much support do you receive from your employer?
4/5
Usually very supportive.
How much support do you receive from your training provider when working towards your qualifications?
4/5
Support usually has to be reached out for by me to the UoK, for example the module convenor for my 3rd year project module has not actually reached out to me to see how it was going. However, my AP advisor is readily contactable and reviews are valuable.
How well do you feel that your qualification (through your training provider) helps you to perform better in your role?
4/5
Topics in the uni modules are often very relevant to my day job, so this certainly helps my understanding in the workplace and therefore does make a difference in helping me understand my role.
Are there extra-curricular activities to get involved in at your work? (For example, any social activities, sports teams, or even professional networking events.)
5/5
Apprenticeship networks, rounders club in the summer, team/department socials, speakers coming in to give talks sometimes.
Recommendations & Advice
Would you recommend AstraZeneca to a friend?
Yes
Why?
Very nice working environment, very professional, high standards, welcoming, patient orientated, and leaders in exciting, novel science fields.
What tips or advice would you give to others applying to AstraZeneca?
Be prepared for the first few weeks to be quite quiet in terms of workload as you find your feet and settle into your niche within the team/department. Be prepared to give presentations on a regular basis, especially after your first few months.
