Drug Discovery Apprentice II Review
at Charles River
Degree Apprenticeship
Harlow
Review Submitted: April 2025
Overall Rating
3.4 /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!
2.5/5
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Overview of Role
3/5
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Skills Development
3.2/5
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Structure and Support
Overview of Role
Please give an overview of your role and what this involves on a day-to-day basis:
3/5
Large majority of regular laboratory housekeeping jobs alongside work within my team, all working towards providing supply to project teams to then generate client data. Depending on business varying amounts of desk based work in conjunction with lab work.
To what extent do you enjoy your programme?
2/5
Other staff are nice socially and a majority are easy to work with. Day to day work enjoyment weighs heavily on interest in the outcomes and the science, which can vary from task to task and between people. Risk of getting monotonous if not seeking alternative tasks, so important to self manage jobs to create variety. Good to get to try new departments.
Study side being self managed has pros and cons, flexibility is nice however lack of structure was daunting initially. Support is available if called upon, however not always sold in the optimal way due to concern of consequences. Never had any significant issues with the university study other than turnaround times of marks occasionally.
Study side being self managed has pros and cons, flexibility is nice however lack of structure was daunting initially. Support is available if called upon, however not always sold in the optimal way due to concern of consequences. Never had any significant issues with the university study other than turnaround times of marks occasionally.
Skills Development
Have you learnt any new skills or developed existing skills?
3/5
Laboratory skills and understanding behind the practices, whilst developing team working collaborative skills. Time management important with structured work alongside ad hoc requests and dealing with errors. Room to develop more however easy to get into a niche.
Structure and Support
How well organised/structured is your programme?
4/5
Work wise structure heavily depends on department of each apprentice, however scheduled yearly changes tend to be handled well enough. Some departments have concrete weekly structure, whereas others may be mostly self structured from speaking to others and their experiences.
University has structure of certain number of modules to complete, whereas outside of that lacking structure has benefits of flexibility however relies heavily on developing your own structure. If this self structure falters at any point this can have knock on effects, however as long as help is sought in time always manageable.
University has structure of certain number of modules to complete, whereas outside of that lacking structure has benefits of flexibility however relies heavily on developing your own structure. If this self structure falters at any point this can have knock on effects, however as long as help is sought in time always manageable.
How much support do you receive from your employer?
3/5
Relatively hands off from University study however not necessarily a bad thing as may complicate and clash needs. Study day agreement across apprentices and departments varies greatly, generally leaning towards business needs over the personal preferences for day choice.
Support as an employee is fine, again being able to seek help if necessary, with variance across departments as an apprentice collective. Personal support experience was positive whenever seeking support, however cannot speak to a broader culture and may have happened in the correct position at the time.
Support as an employee is fine, again being able to seek help if necessary, with variance across departments as an apprentice collective. Personal support experience was positive whenever seeking support, however cannot speak to a broader culture and may have happened in the correct position at the time.
How much support do you receive from your training provider when working towards your qualifications?
3/5
Regular catch-ups are available however depends heavily on the specific assigned academic advisor. Support is offered fairly regularly at quarterly catch-ups and breadth of options appear available, tailoring to personal preferences of comfort. Turnaround times as far as module academics has room for improvement, and mixed success outcomes depending on academic. Now found a comfortable space and understanding however had teething issues early on.
How well do you feel that your qualification (through your training provider) helps you to perform better in your role?
2/5
Varies greatly on department in current rotation, however en masse not a huge application, however this may not cover the general apprentice experience. Service roles supplying to project teams tend to require little scientific knowledge and more soft/team based skills. Critical thinking and self management necessary with studies as a practice has positive impact on self work scheduling, however not necessarily to do with the qualification as such, and may still be early days.
Are there extra-curricular activities to get involved in at your work? (For example, any social activities, sports teams, or even professional networking events.)
4/5
Regular social opportunities, reduced in frequency significantly from prior, however may be bouncing back more recently. Rounders as a regular activity, as well as other sports based enrichment such as football and golf. Varies between teams but fairly common to have celebratory work lunches for occasions.
Recommendations & Advice
Would you recommend Charles River to a friend?
Yes
Why?
In the discovery sciences space I think CRL is a strong name and fairly reliable so as long as a friend knows they will be interested in the space in that respect recommendable. Important to know what type of work one would want to do before confirming as as a general employment opportunity other options are available.
What tips or advice would you give to others applying to Charles River?
Have in mind an aim for the future and what you are aiming towards. Whether that involves a specific field or team that may sound interesting, including if using as a stepping stone for future development opportunities.
