Industrial Placement Student Review

Item: Industrial Placement Student at Vertex Pharmaceuticals
Rating: 5
Author: Anonymous

at Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Placement (10 Months+)

Chemistry

Oxford

Review Submitted: May 2023

Overall Rating

5 /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!

5/5 - Overview of Role

5/5 - Skills Development

5/5 - Support and Guidance

5/5 - Company Culture

5/5 - Overall Experience

5/5 - Future Career Prospects

Overview of Role

Please give an overview of your role and what this involves on a day-to-day basis.

As a placement student, I was first given time to work on my own student project, which I can show to my university. The project is synthesis based, so it involved looking up literatures for methods to synthesise molecules. I also have the opportunities to attend meetings for an internal project. There are also a range of talks and classes that we can attend to improve our scientific knowledge and skills within the company.

Were you given much responsibility during your placement / internship?

With my own student project, my manager was providing necessary training and guidance but I was responsible for the project. I did all the practical work and will be synthesising more molecules for an internal project.

Please rate how meaningful the work you were doing was

5/5

Skills Development

Have you learnt any new skills, or developed your existing skills?

Absolutely, I feel much more confident in the lab than I was before I started. In addition to my synthesis skill, I also learned to use different machines to purify compounds, such as automatic column machines, reverse-phase column machines and HPLC. Outside of labs, I have also received training on my presentation skills. It covered areas from improving your PowerPoint to giving a public speech.

How would you rate the training provided during your experience?

5/5

How would you rate your development of industry-specific skills during the experience?

5/5

How would you rate your development of personal / soft skills during the experience?

5/5

Please rate how these skills have helped you in your career development

5/5

Support and Guidance

How much support and guidance did you receive during your placement / internship?

More than I ever received from my university. The experience has been incredible. My manager is always around and happy to help. Colleagues are also very friendly.

How would you rate the support and guidance from your line manager?

5/5

How would you rate the support and guidance from the wider team?

5/5

Company Culture

What was the company culture and general atmosphere like?

Everyone is friendly within the company. There are regular tea breaks within the Chemistry department so we can connect with our colleagues and take a break if we decide to. Every Friday afternoon is our social hour, during which we can have drinks and snacks while socialising with our colleagues.