Associate Clinical Development Scientist (Study Manager) Review

The role is incredibly varied so each day is different. Normally, I would start my day going through my emails and providing any support to country representatives that may have questions or require access to different systems and responding to vendor queries. This role involves being organised and one of my responsibilities is placing orders for items such as lab kits, needles, iPad devices and ensuring they are delivered at sites on time so important milestones and timelines can be met. I would normally check all shipments are in order and ensure the tracking numbers are available a couple of times a week. I also attend meetings, sometimes leading the meetings, and work with our vendors. There is also the opportunity to create documents such as site newsletters that the clinical sites will see and use as well as producing excel files such as a visit calculator that help support the study.

During my placement I had a lot of responsibility from very early on, however I always felt supported and knew who to go to if I was unsure of any decisions. I had the opportunity to manage vendors and had country oversight, ensuring that the trial and recruitment ran smoothly in those countries. Ordering the supplies also had a lot of responsibility to it as if the supplies weren't ordered or if they were incorrect this could jeopardise country metrics and timelines.

The skill I have developed most during my placement is problem solving, this skill is required everyday as well as thinking out side of the box. The variety of issues that come also requires agile thinking and forethought to ensure that they are solved. This has also increased by resilience. My excel skills have also developed and I had the opportunity to learn about macros and programming within excel. In this role you work with lots of functions across lots of countries which has improved my communication skills and presentation skills.

The entire department were lovely and incredibly supported. I was surprised by how many people were willing to have a chat about their roles and was there for if I had questions. My line manager was very invested in my development and provided a safe space for me to share and worries, concerns, or personal problems. One of the study team members also spent an hour a week going through any questions I might have, explaining different processes, and mentoring me. A buddy and mentor from a different department were also assigned to support me.

The culture at GSK is incredibly friendly and people are very willing to get a coffee with you and chat about their role. When I first joined I received lots of welcome emails and the people were lovely. The office atmosphere is vibrant and there are lots of initiatives to help people meet each other such as a coffee roulette where you are paired with a different person every other month and have the opportunity to have a friendly chat and get to know each other.

I have loved my placement year at GSK and very much enjoyed my role and the team I worked within. I'm very grateful to have had the opportunity to complete my placement year and GSK and found that I could easily fit into the culture. There is a steep learning curve to begin with especially as everything is so new but eventually you settle into it and grow into yourself as the year goes on.

Yes