12 Month University Industrial Placement Student (UIPS): Biometrics

Job Description

12 Month University Industrial Placement Student (UIPS): Biometrics

Macclesfield, UK

£26,000 Base Salary, Bonus & Flexible Benefits

About AstraZeneca:

AstraZeneca is a global, science-led, patient-centred biopharmaceutical company that focuses on the discovery, development and commercialization of prescription medicines for some of the world’s most serious diseases. But we’re more than a global leading pharmaceutical company. At AstraZeneca, we‘re dedicated to being a Great Place to Work where you are empowered to push the boundaries of science and fuel your entrepreneurial spirit. There’s no better place to make a difference to medicine, patients and society.

About the University Industrial Placement Student (UIPS) Programme:

Join a Truly Inclusive and Supportive International Team.

As an AstraZeneca placement student, there is a huge network of support available to you. You’ll have a dedicated supervisor, a supportive early talent peer network, and a variety of Employee Resource Groups you can join.

We help and empower each other, and our supervisors are committed to providing you with all the guidance and support you need to build your skills, confidence and capabilities.

Whatever your background and experience, you'll be welcomed and encouraged to speak up, ask questions and share knowledge. You will be a valued part of an international team of truly supportive, collaborative and inclusive individuals.

Are you ready to explore this exciting next step in your career? Apply today!

Macclesfield

The Macclesfield Campus is an essential part of AstraZeneca’s UK Operation and the 2nd largest operational site within the company’s global network. It is approx. 100 acres with around 4500 people working on site. The site is unique in the AstraZeneca network having Operations, R&D, G&A, IT and others on its site.

About the Opportunity:

Biometrics is the home of early and late-stage drug development biometrics activity at AstraZeneca. We support all aspects of clinical development, including strategy, clinical trial design, data collection, analyses, data reporting and interpretation to inform quality decision making on AstraZeneca’s drug projects. Our goal is to deliver value to the drug development pipeline through excellence in strategy and delivery, improving decision making, and engaging and shaping the external environment whilst accessing and implementing innovative solutions.

We have two placement opportunities for undergraduate students to work in the pharmaceutical industry within the Oncology Biometrics Team, as either as Clinical Information Scientists or AI Science Specialists (dependant on degree being undertaken), supporting both early and late phase drug projects. You will receive on the job training and work alongside Biometrics colleagues working on real drug development projects.

As a member of Oncology Biometrics’ Information Practice team, you can expect to:

• Gain experience of the drug development process.
• Apply in practice your scientific, biological, or data science education.
• Develop scientific literature search skills and NLP software application.
• Capture and retain knowledge for easy retrieval to support decision-making.
• Apply artificial intelligence (AI) techniques, to solve real business problems and enhance decision-making processes.
• Contribute to internal Functional forums.

You will also have the opportunity to enhance your transferable skills by presenting your work within AZ that will enhance your communication skills.

Qualification, Skills & Experience

Required:

• Currently undertaking an undergraduate or integrated master’s degree with the opportunity to spend 1 year in industry starting in September 2026.
• Degree subject must be within biological science, information science, engineering, computer science, or data science/analytics.
• Knowledge of oncology and drug development, as well as proficiency in utilizing biomedical literature databases (if you are a student of biological sciences).
• Hands-on experience coding in Python, R, or Julia and have worked on projects involving machine learning, data analysis, or AI (if you are a student of data/computer science)
• Understanding of the basics of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning and have used AI libraries or frameworks, such as scikit-learn, TensorFlow, or PyTorch, in coursework or projects.
• Interest in new AI technologies like agentic AI—systems that can act independently or support human decision-making—and would like to learn how to build or use such agents.
• Good organizational skills and can plan, manage, and deliver small projects or assignments.
• Ability to see opportunities, learn, and apply that learning to drive innovation.
• Good collaboration and teamworking skills.
• You enjoy learning, solving problems, and coming up with innovative ideas.

Desirable:

• Awareness of basic machine learning and natural language processing (NLP) concepts.
• Experience and insight into the architecture and practical application of Agentic AI systems, and experience of designing or contributing to the semi-autonomous or autonomous intelligent agents that support automated decision-making or workflow optimization.
• Familiarity with basic literature search methods.
• Experience with data visualisation tools such as Power Bi or Tableau.
• Experience with version control systems (e.g., Git) when working on coding projects
• Clearly explain your findings and AI-related work to technical and non-technical audiences.

Applications Open: 1st September 2025

Applications Close: 28th September 2025

Assessment Day: 28th & 29th October 2025

Start Date: 7th September 2026

This position is a 12-month fixed term contract.

AstraZeneca is proud to be ranked as a Top 100 ‘Best Student Employer’ in the UK by RateMyPlacement. Browse our reviews here (link)

AstraZeneca embraces diversity and equality of opportunity. We are committed to building an inclusive and diverse team representing all backgrounds, with as wide a range of perspectives as possible, and harnessing industry-leading skills. We believe that the more inclusive we are, the better our work will be. We welcome and consider applications to join our team from all qualified candidates, regardless of their characteristics. We comply with all applicable laws and regulations on non-discrimination in employment (and recruitment), as well as work authorization and employment eligibility verification requirements.

Date Posted

01-Sept-2025

Closing Date

28-Sept-2025Our mission is to build an inclusive and equitable environment. We want people to feel they belong at AstraZeneca and Alexion, starting with our recruitment process. We welcome and consider applications from all qualified candidates, regardless of characteristics. We offer reasonable adjustments/accommodations to help all candidates to perform at their best. If you have a need for any adjustments/accommodations, please complete the section in the application form.