Karen from Analytical Chemistry
I studied a joint Chemistry/Pharmacology degree at the University of Leeds. I was interested in AstraZeneca because of the work they do and I was very impressed by the openness and friendliness of the people. The selection procedure consisted of two interviews. The first interview took half a day and the second two days. The latter included an informal evening meal where we met other employees not involved in the recruitment process so that we could find out more about the company from an employee perspective. As a new graduate analytical chemist I was given the opportunity to learn many of the techniques used in the department. I became confident in the use of a wide range of analytical techniques, covering both physical and chemical properties of different compounds. I was then given the choice of which techniques interested me most and which techniques I would like to develop further. I chose to develop my knowledge and practical skills in GC and GC-MS, although I still use the whole range of analytical techniques in my day-to-day role. I have attended many courses that have increased my technical knowledge. It is not just my technical skills that have increased, because we work in a diverse team I have been encouraged to increase my transferable skills to ensure the team can work effectively and I can maximise my contribution to the team. I have been supported by my manager to attend in-house courses and develop personal skills, coaching is always available. Currently I am on placement in process chemistry. The analytical group that I work in is aligned with process chemistry so this placement will give me a chance to refresh my synthetic chemistry knowledge, a greater appreciation of the work of this group and also a chance to highlight the analytical chemistry viewpoint to this group when problems arise. When I heard a place might be coming up I approached my manager and told her I was interested. I was given full support to follow this opportunity, because it was recognised that this would increase my knowledge of how the company works as well as giving me a broader appreciation of how different departments work. My experience of AstraZeneca has been one of a company that gives support to each employee to develop themselves to their full potential, and encourages them to be part of the company both on a professional and personal level. |
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