Student Medical Writing and Pharmacovigilance Assistant (undergraduate placement scheme)

Student Medical Writing and Pharmacovigilance Assistant (undergraduate placement scheme)

Salary: £24,000 plus benefits
Reports to: Principal Medical Writer
Directorate: Research & Innovation
Contract: 54 Week, Fixed Term Contract
Hours: Full-time, 35 hours per week
Location: Stratford, London Office-based with high flexibility (1-2 days per week in the office)
Closing date: Sunday 9th November 23:55pm
This vacancy may close earlier if a high volume of applications is received therefore, we strongly recommend that you apply early to avoid disappointment. Please let us know if there is anything about the recruitment process that you would like to discuss, in particular if there are any changes or adjustments that would make it easier for you to apply. Please contact recruitment@cancer.org.uk
Recruitment process: Competency based interview + written task in relation to the placement.

Visa sponsorship: You must be eligible to work in the UK to apply for this vacancy. Cancer Research UK is not able to offer visa sponsorship.

At Cancer Research UK, we exist to beat cancer.

Cancer Research UK are looking for a motivated and ambitious undergraduate student to join our Centre for Drug Development (CDD) as Student Medical Writing and Pharmacovigilance Assistant. You will aid in the development of new cancer therapies by providing administrative support to the Medical Writing (MW) and Pharmacovigilance (PV) teams in accordance with CRUK Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) and policies, International Conference on Harmonisation (ICH) and Good Clinical Practice (GCP) guidelines and requirements to facilitate the successful execution of MW and PV clinical trial-related activities within the Centre for Drug Development (CDD). To find out more, read all the details below. You can also hear from some of our past students here.

About the placement   

The CDD at Cancer Research UK consists of a diverse and experienced office-based and home-based team who sponsor and manage high-quality early phase clinical trials. We work in collaboration with leading scientists and clinicians around the UK to develop effective new anti-cancer treatments. 

Here at the CDD, we’re offering a unique opportunity to gain valuable experience and training within a world-class clinical research environment. Our placements will provide you with an exciting opportunity to develop key skills, which will help to open doors to future careers within this industry. During this placement year, the chosen candidates will be provided with training, mentorship, and exposure to key roles in drug development and pharmaceutical research. 

If you’re a motivated life sciences student, with an interest in drug development and oncology clinical trials, then this is your opportunity to gain invaluable experience working within the pharmaceutical sector.

We have one 54-week placement to offer, with a negotiable start date in July 2027.

What will you be doing?

This role will be split between the Medical Writing and Pharmacovigilance teams, and will include the following responsibilities:

• Provide administrative support to the MW and PV teams as required.

• Support the MW and PV teams in maintaining relevant sections of the Trial Master File (TMF), ensuring that MW/PV documentation is filed and reviewed appropriately.

• Build good working relationships with key functions in the CDD to ensure timely delivery of documents.

• Organise and participate in meetings with both internal and external groups, taking minutes as requested.

• Develop and maintain an awareness of the main clinical development activities, in particular those related to the QRPV and BMW departments.

• Develop and maintain an awareness of CDD clinical trials and key projects.

• Support other functions in the CDD with administrative tasks where appropriate.

Pharmacovigilance:

• Assist with processing of serious adverse event (SAE) reports in the pharmacovigilance database according to CDD standard operating procedures, including obtaining follow-up information when applicable.

• To support the preparation of Development Safety Update Reports (DSURs) as required.

• To contribute to the ongoing safety evaluation process for the identification of safety risks.

• Oversee the tracking of activities performed by PV.

• Other tasks as delegated by the Senior PV Scientist or PV Manager.

Medical writing:

• Manage and track documents required for Clinical Study Report (CSR) and Investigator Brochure (IB) preparation;

• Provide support for the preparation, authoring, review and quality control of CSRs, safety narratives, report appendices, IBs, lay summaries of results, and other documentation as required.

• Other tasks as delegated by the Principal MW or MW Manager.

What are we looking for? 

If you’re a motivated life sciences student, with an interest in drug development and oncology clinical trials, then this is your opportunity to gain invaluable experience working within the pharmaceutical sector. You will need to be able to demonstrate:

• Strong organisational and time management skills.

• Excellent communication skills (written and verbal).

• Ability to confidently communicate with an array of internal and external contacts.

• Excellent attention to detail.

• Ability to work as part of a team and independently in an enthusiastic, proactive fashion.

• Good working knowledge of Microsoft based packages (Word, Excel and PowerPoint).

• Strong problem-solving skills.

• Familiarity with ICH/GCP guidelines would be beneficial but isn’t essential (you will learn in the role).

• Experience working in an office environment would be beneficial but isn’t essential.

Please read the following information carefully before applying: 

If you would like to apply for the placement student scheme, please ensure that you meet the following criteria before completing your application form: 

• You must be currently studying for an undergraduate degree at university. Your degree course must support a placement year in industry. Please note that applications from graduates or PhD students, or students for whom a placement year is not a part of their degree course, will NOT be considered for this scheme. 

• You should expect to receive a 2:1 or grade B in your year-end results in a science related degree. 

• You should have 3 A levels (or equivalent) grade B and above (preferably one in a biological science). 

• You should be able to commence work in July 2027 (the start date is negotiable). 

• You should have the right to live and work in the UK without restriction. We regret that we cannot consider applications from candidates who require a work permit to work in the UK. 

If you meet these requirements, we look forward to receiving your application. Please note that this role is flexible role (office-based with an option to partly work from home), not laboratory based. 

Useful tips for completion of the application form: 

• Read through the whole form first and draft your answers accordingly. 

• Complete all sections - please do not leave any gaps. 

• Check your spelling and grammar. 

• Be concise and focused in your answers. 

• And finally, don’t forget, it’s important that you tell us how you found out about the scheme. 

If your application is shortlisted, you will be invited to attend a virtual interview. This will involve some exercises designed to assess your ability and a competency interview. If we have a large number of applicants then a short screening call may precede the main interview.

How do I apply?

We operate an anonymised shortlisting process in our commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion. CVs are required for all applications but we won’t be able to view them until we invite you for an interview. Instead, we ask you to complete the work history section of the online application form and answer some screening questions for us to be able to assess you fairly and objectively.

Our organisation values are designed to guide all that we do.

Bold: Act with ambition, courage and determination  

Credible: Act with rigour and professionalism   

Human: Act to have a positive impact on people  

Together: Act inclusively and collaboratively

We’re looking for people who can believe in and embody these organisation values and can use them to drive forward progress against our mission to beat cancer.

What will I gain?

We create a working environment that supports your wellbeing and provide a generous benefits package, a wide range of career and personal development opportunities and high-quality tools. Our policies and processes enable you to improve your work-life balance, take positive steps in your career and achieve your personal wellbeing goals.

You can explore our benefits by visiting our careers web page.

For more information on this career opportunity please visit our website or contact us at recruitment@cancer.org.uk.  

For more updates on our work and careers, follow us on: Linked In, Facebook, Instagram, X and YouTube.

Our vision is to create a charity where everyone feels like they belong, benefits from and participates in, the work we do. We actively encourage applications from people of all backgrounds and cultures, in particular those from ethnic minority backgrounds who are currently under-represented.

We want to see every candidate performing at their best throughout the job application process, interview process and whilst at work. We therefore ask you to inform us of any concerns you have or any adjustments you might need to enable this to happen. Please contact recruitment@cancer.org.uk or 020 3469 8400 as soon as possible. 

Unfortunately, we are unable to recruit anyone below the age of 18, so that we can protect young people from health & safety and safeguarding risks.