Placements, Work Experience and Study Abroad
Industrial Placements and Work Experience
You can get research and work experience in a number of ways:
- Industrial Placement Year. Our BSc degree courses can be taken with a placement year. This one year placement is taken between second and third years of study and includes a wide range opportunities - these can be within the Life Sciences sector or any graduate level role outside it. BSc Placements can take place within the UK or abroad.
- Integrated Master's (MBio). These four year courses provide an additional year of study focused on a substantial research project, this can either be undertaken within the School of Life Sciences or whilst placed in industry.
- Undergraduate Research Support Scheme (URSS). This Warwick scheme offers opportunities for you to gain experience in our research laboratories in the summer vacation. Bursaries are available to help support you financially.
- Summer Placements/Internships. Many students consider short term summer work experience to support their careers goals. The School and University Career's Service can offer support to students in securing these opportunities.
Recent examples of placements include:
- AstraZeneca
- GlaxoSmithKline
- Pfizer
- Public Health England
- Unilever
- Cancer Research UK
"He seems to have grown immensely in confidence - actually seems like a different student to me."
Comment by Professor Robin Allaby after visiting one of his personal tutees on industrial placement at GSK.
"When I began immersing myself into my MBio research project, I quickly realised that I enjoyed what I was doing and I produced some significant results which have been included in my first published paper! During my MBio project, I started to realise that I might enjoy doing a PhD. I then started looking around for PhDs and managed to get onto the Midlands Integrative Biosciences Training Partnership (MIBTP)."
Anjana, MBio Biomedical Science.
To get a feel of what it would be like on placement, take a look at this 2 minute video on the 'Day in the Life'Link opens in a new window of a placement student and follow Ollie Clowes on a typical day at Roche.
Study Abroad
BSc degrees also offer the opportunity to take a Study Year Abroad at one of our international partner institutions between your second and third years of study.
It's a great way to experience another culture and broaden your degree by studying additional subjects.
School of Life Sciences partner institutions:
- University of Strasbourg (France)
- University of Konstanz (Germany)
- UAB Barcelona (Spain)
We are actively seeking new exchange partners to match our student's preferred destinations.
In the past few years we’ve had students going to University-wide partner institutions:
- Monash University (Australia)
- McMaster University (Canada)
- Nanyang Technological University (Singapore)
- Seoul National University (South Korea)
- Nagoya University (Japan)
"During my time at McMaster University, Canada, I was able to experience learning in many different ways and enjoy a range of modules which allowed me to explore areas I was particularly interested in and areas I had not yet seen before. Whilst at McMaster, I first learned about circadian rhythms in mammals; a field which would go on to be the focus of my PhD.
Studying abroad pushed me to really explore and take myself out of my familiar surroundings, allowing me to gain confidence in trying new things and meeting new people. Importantly, it gave me the opportunity to change pace during my degree and really reflect on how I could improve going into my final year of Biomedical Science."
Lauren, Biomedical Science, Study Abroad placement at McMaster University, Canada.