University Industrial Placement Student Review

I am/was based in the High Throughput Screening team within the Discovery Sciences department at AZ. Most of my days are/were very consistent - arrive to the office, go to the lab and set up the day's experiment, extract yesterday's data and go to the office to analyse it.
Some days are more lab heavy than others, but a big chunk of my time was spent doing data analysis and presentation.

Definitely. Naturally my project was not top priority, but I was responsible for the data output and quality of the work. At first, I was working under full supervision, later transitioning into more independent work both in the lab and office, with my supervisor's support when needed.

Definitely. New skills were automation, biophysical techniques, protein purification, various data analysis softwares.

I received all the support I needed. From the first day at AZ, my supervisors set up weekly 1:1 to check on my work and overall wellbeing, propose any new ideas and insight, and give chance to present my work. They are/were very always supportive with impromptu meetings and messages over teams. The team members as well were also very welcoming and supportive, always down to help in the lab when I needed it.

The overall atmosphere is very friendly and everyone here is super smart, so it unconsciously making you try your best. People in my team like to joke around and we had weekly Friday cake slots to sit down, unwind and enjoy sweets.

Very much! A bit sad it's coming to an end. AZ was truly an amazing place to work at. I feel like I grew not only as a scientist, but as a person too. All of the knowledge, connections and memories I made here helped me shape my next steps after graduating, and gave me enough confidence to pursue what I want.

Yes