For me completing a placement year was a no brainer. The opportunity to witness and apply theoretical frameworks which we learn at about at university in an international corporation is a chance I felt would have been crazy to miss. A year in industry allowed me to gain a working knowledge of not only my own organisation but others we work closely with and is something I firmly believe will be the springboard into graduate employment.

My very vaguely titled role can effectively be summarised in a sentence.. ‘As a supply analyst, my main responsibility was to identify, quantify and mitigate supply continuity risk across a portfolio of 250 products in UK/IE & the Nordic region’. I basically had to ensure a product i.e. a bottle of Listerine Mouthwash, made it onto a shelf at Tesco for instance and had to navigate it through the various twists and turns of the supply network.

I’d say my placement was almost perfect. I had a brilliant experience both at work and socially, I would recommend a placement year to anyone and would be confident they’d have a great year like I have.

It’s cliché, however, the thing I enjoyed most about the placement was the real responsibility that I was given. I was entrusted with maintaining supply of some of the businesses most important products which, if I made a mistake, could have cost the company a lot of money. That trust and responsibility that the company put in me acted as a huge motivator and was something I sought after and thoroughly enjoyed.

The relationship J&J have with LUMS is brilliant and was a huge contributor in why I applied to J&J in the first place. The LUMS Placements Team were a key player in my employment. I have no doubt that the experience gained in my placement year will be fundamental in my graduate career as it will allow me to view every aspect of the workplace differently to a student who has never set foot in a working environment. My placement will help me in any industry/company I apply for or potentially within Johnson & Johnson itself.