senior Laboratory technician Review

by AstraZeneca

Best Apprenticeship Employer

Rating

4.2/10

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

I review Lab technicians testing batch folders and close them off, any out of specification results are trended and investigated.

9/10

2. Have you learnt any new skills or developed existing skills?

yes I had very little science background before starting this job, I am a fully trained testing technician across two teams and have now progressed to reviewing testing batches and reporting results.

10/10

3. To what extent do you enjoy your programme?

I love my job , but I don't enjoy the apprenticeship programme

1/10

4. How well organised/structured is your programme?

poorly there is a constant lack of communication between employer and training programme. A lot of information is missed and sprung on us last minute which can be quite stressful.

1/10

5. How much support do you receive from your employer?

I have had quite a few mangers whilst being on this programme, some have supported more than others. I think a support network is missing for the apprenticeship programme. I think it would be nice for catch up sessions to be put in place or monthly chats to check we are coping and if anymore support is needed.

4/10

6. How much support do you receive from your training provider when working towards your qualifications?

very little , I sometimes feel like they don't understand the pressures and stress we can be put under for working full time and studying at the same time.

4/10

7. How well do you feel that your qualification (through your training provider) helps you to perform better in your role?

I don't feel like the course is very relevant to my role, everything I have learnt within my role has been through on the job training and gaining knowledge from experienced technicians within the team.

4/10

8. Are there extra-curricular activities to get involved in at your work? (For example, any social activities, sports teams, or even professional networking events.)

1/10

9a. Would you recommend AstraZeneca to a friend?

Yes

9b. Why?

I would recommend working at AstraZeneca , but I wouldn't recommend doing an apprentship, its a lot of work stress and pressure for quite a few years and I don't particularly feel I have gotten anything out of it.

10. What tips or advice would you give to others applying to AstraZeneca?

To be 100% sure that's it what you want to do. If you struggled studying at school / collage then to ask for more information on the training programme before you apply. As distance learning is incredible hard, I wish someone had warned me how hard the course is before I signed up.