Healthcare Science Week 2021: Apriya, Medical Science Liaison

By Apriya Banwaitt, Medical Science Liaison

For our second story this Healthcare Science Week 2021 features Apriya Banwaitt, a Medical Science Liaison at Novartis within the graduate programme. Apriya shares her experience of Novartis’ graduate programme and gives her advice on starting a career in science.

​Why did you apply for a graduate internship at Novartis?
My story is slightly different from other graduates as I applied to the graduate internship at Novartis a couple of years after graduating. I was practising in NHS as a community pharmacist and I was not sure what I wanted to do at the time. I knew of friends who were already in the pharmaceutical industry and I felt inspired by the stories they would share.

One day, I came across an advertisement through Guidant Global offering a position as a junior scientific adviser role – they were looking for pharmacists and doctors at the time! I did some research about Novartis and I really wanted to be part of a company who embraced diverse perspectives and inclusive behaviours which they believe is what helps generate new ideas, drive innovation, understand our stakeholders and be closer to our patients.

Being a health care professional myself this resonated with me, and I wanted to get involved with a company that embraces differences and places patients at the heart of everything they do!

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What were the highlights of your internship?
I learnt so much during my year as an intern, but one of my highlights was being able to witness the positive impact that these medicines have on patients. It gives them hope and I was never able to be part of something so rewarding before!

I enjoyed learning about the different stages of the product life cycle from development stage to launch and then to market. I have learnt so much from my colleagues and the amount of hard work and dedication that goes into this. You are always learning something new every day!

In addition, I really enjoyed the social aspect. You get to meet other interns and build your own community and help one another succeed. I have been lucky to find really good friends here. This internship gives you an opportunity to shape the role yourself and explore other areas of work that may be of interest to you.

Novartis has a very much ‘unbossed’ culture and this allows you to embrace new opportunities – which is empowering!

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What advice can you give to aspiring graduates who may be interested in applying for a Novartis graduate internship?
If you are passionate about helping patients and really want to make a difference by bringing innovative ideas, then apply to Novartis. I would say think about the bigger picture. For example, where do you want to see yourself in five or 10 years?

If it wasn’t for this internship, I would not have been able to gain this invaluable experience, which equipped me into becoming a Medical Science Liaison, where I now can really help make a difference to patients’ lives! As many have said before, you really have nothing to lose, only something to gain with this internship!

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