APPRENTICESHIP STANDARDS
Apprenticeship standards that Marshall Assessment currently End Point Assess
This occupation is found in a wide range of organisations, including but not exclusively, chemical, primary and secondary pharmaceutical, biotechnology, formulated products, nuclear companies; and analytical science services, dental laboratories and educational establishments.
The broad purpose of the occupation is working at the forefront of technology to carry out both routine and one-off laboratory testing (and manufacturing where relevant) and perform a variety of technical support functions across the organisation.
In their daily work, an employee in this occupation interacts with the laboratory manager and colleagues, internal departments such as manufacturing, procurement and quality, internal customers such as medical staff, teaching staff and students, external suppliers and customers such as service engineers, delivery drivers, regulatory bodies and inspection teams e.g. HSE.
An employee in this occupation will be responsible for proactively finding solutions to problems and identifying areas for improving the business. Laboratory technicians are expected to work both individually and as part of a laboratory team. They are able to work with minimum supervision, taking responsibility for the quality and accuracy of their own work. In any context working safely and ethically is paramount and many companies operate under highly regulated conditions. Laboratory technicians therefore follow quality procedures to meet the requirements of quality standards relevant to their work. It is not a requirement, either to practise in this occupation or as part of this apprenticeship, for apprentices to achieve additional qualifications (other than the usual English and maths requirements for an apprenticeship at this level) or professional recognition. However, this apprenticeship standard has been carefully designed with some of the requirements of certain relevant professional bodies in mind. Apprentices and employers should speak to the professional bodies relevant to the industry or sector within which they are working to ascertain the additional requirements that must be met for professional recognition by these organisations. Recognition by those organisations will be dependent on the acquisition of learning as defined by them.
Science manufacturing technicians work in a wide range of companies, including, but not exclusively, chemical, primary and secondary pharmaceutical, biotechnology, formulated products and nuclear manufacturing. A science manufacturing technician will operate the systems and equipment, involved in the production of products. They may work in varied conditions including wearing specialist safety equipment, shift work and on sites running 365 day operations. Many companies operate under highly regulated conditions and a premium is placed on appropriate attitudes and behaviours to ensure employees comply with organisational safety and regulatory requirements.
Science manufacturing technicians are expected to work both individually and as part of a manufacturing team. They are able to work with minimum supervision, taking responsibility for the quality and accuracy of the work they undertake. They are proactive in finding solutions to problems and identifying areas for improving their work environment.
A fully competent Laboratory Scientist will be able to work in a wide range of organisations, including but not exclusively, chemical, pharmaceutical, biotechnology, formulated products, nuclear and analytical services. A scientist can carry out a range of technical and scientific activities which may include laboratory based investigations and scientific experimentation in their specialist field. They will analyse, interpret and evaluate relevant scientific information, concepts and ideas and use these to develop subsequent experiments or investigations and to propose solutions to problems. They will be able to apply knowledge of underlying scientific principles to implement new processes according to the literature or input from senior team members. They will be able to work autonomously and part of a wider scientific team, taking responsibility for the quality of the work that is undertaken, to deliver scientific value to their organisation. They will be proactive in finding solutions to problems, be able to identify areas of business improvement and propose innovative scientific ideas. In all contexts working safely and ethically is paramount and many companies operate under highly regulated conditions because of the need to control the quality and safety, for example medicines.
Typical job roles may include; Analytical Chemist, Research & Development Scientist, Molecular Biologist, Microbiologist, Formulation Scientist, Medicinal Chemist, Process Technologist, Biotechnologist
A technician scientist carries out established laboratory based investigations and basic scientific experimentation using bench and instrumentation techniques. They use a range of routine skills and some advanced and specialised skills following well established principles associated with their organisation’s science and technology, which may typically be within chemical, pharmaceutical, biotechnology, formulated products or analytical services.
They carry out routine lines of enquiry, development or investigation taking responsibility for the quality of the work they undertake. They work safely and ethically often under highly regulated conditions because of the need to control quality and safety of scientific products. They critically evaluate appropriateness of commonly used approaches to solving routine problems, using a range of approaches to formulate evidence based responses to defined and routine problems and issues within their area of work. They also contribute to solutions to problems within the wider scientific team, using appropriate project management procedures. They perform record keeping and checks and use data capture systems relevant to the technical and scientific procedures that they use. They analyse relevant scientific information, interpret and evaluate data, prepare results and provide progress updates of their work. They manage resources within a clearly defined area.
They use their awareness of any research interests and the technical context and processes of the laboratory alongside senior team members to contribute to the proposal of new scientific ideas. They have an up to date knowledge of technical, scientific and regulatory developments related to the conduct of the laboratory. They communicate information, arguments and analysis in a variety of forms to specialist and non-specialist audiences
They work as part of a wider scientific team, which may include laboratory scientists and laboratory technicians, in settings where there is certainty and with limited ambiguity taking personal responsibility for decision making in routine predictable contexts.
A laboratory scientist applies specialist knowledge and broad scientific understanding to carry out a range of technical and scientific activities in their specialist discipline: Chemical Science, Life Sciences, Research & Development, and Analytical. They analyse, interpret and evaluate relevant scientific information, concepts and ideas and use these to develop subsequent experiments or investigations and to propose solutions to problems. They identify areas of business improvement and propose innovative scientific ideas. They perform practical, established and novel laboratory procedures using standard and specialist laboratory equipment and instrumentation. Ensuring uniformity, consistency, reliability, reproducibility, quality, and integrity of scientific tests underpins their work and the working environment. In all contexts working safely and ethically is paramount. Laboratory scientists work in a wide range of organisations, including chemical, pharmaceutical, biotechnology, formulated products, consumer products, nuclear and analytical services. They work autonomously on defined projects under the supervision of a senior scientist and as part of a wider scientific team, which may include laboratory technologist and laboratory technicians. They deliver scientific value to their organisation, whilst contributing to the development of others.
Research Scientist - Level 7
ST0759
This occupation is found in a wide range of industries including Pharmaceutical, Clinical Trials, Personal Care, Analytical, Manufacturing, Water/Environmental, Energy, Agricultural, Food Science, FMCG, Petro-Chemical, Nuclear, Aerospace, Oil, Gas, Materials, Renewable, Bio medical, NHS, Diagnostics and MOD/Defense.
The broad purpose of the occupation is someone who is primarily involved in planning, leading and conducting experiments and analysing results, either with a definite end use, for example to develop new products, processes or commercial applications, or to broaden scientific understanding in general. They provide scientific and technical leadership, giving a clear sense of purpose and driving strategic intent. They can expect to lead on business critical projects - managing the design and implementation of such projects both internally and externally, disseminating findings to internal and external stake-holders and making strategic recommendations based upon the findings of the project. They take into account new scientific methods and breakthroughs, identifying longer-term opportunities and risks. They will be able to effectively collaborate with both industry and academia, working in multidisciplinary teams, to apply results of research and develop new techniques, products or practices. They are responsible for developing ethical, innovative research practices and programmes with the ability to deliver results. They are a role model, with responsibility for those in senior positions and significant organisational budgets. In their daily work, an employee in this occupation interacts with a wide range of individuals and teams. This is due to the varied work and leadership roles that the individual undertakes through their work. This means that these varied interactions require them to communicate across businesses and industries and lead on ensuring scientific information is communicated in efficient ways, examples of these varied interactions are;
Internal - Direct Reports/teams, Project Teams, Line Managers, Senior Managers, Company Boards, Global Heads of Departments, Teams in other International Regions, Manufacturing Sites, Legal Teams, Sales and Marketing teams, Data Management, Securities Teams, Quality Control and Design Teams
Externals - Compliance, Legislation (court/legal) , Regulatory Bodies, Professional Bodies, Universities and Educational Bodies, Customers, External Partners, NGOs, Contract Research Organisations, Sector forums, Patient groups, Media, Technical Specialists, Suppliers andSector skills councils,
The working environment may also be varied and change from day to day due to the diverse nature of the projects and work that the individual may be working on, but can include;
Lab Based, Manufacturing Plants, Field based - External sites(out side), office based, home based, Customer sites, Conferences and education facilities. An employee in this occupation will be responsible for autonomously managing their own work programs and time while maintaining their own CPD and continuing to develop and update the knowledge and skills of others (coach develop/lead). They are responsible for direct line management of research teams or leading peer groups and collections of scientists in programs/experimentation's to achieve required goals. They report to senior level management/heads of functions while also being accountable for reporting to board members within the company, clients and research councils. They will be responsible for budgetary control of their projects and advising on wider company impacts of research around production costs and profitability of research results.
They will be responsible for managing different streams of work and leading on/designing and carrying out trails of process and procedures and Translation of science to action. Alongside also designing , developing, implementing and evaluating these business changes.
The volumes and breath of this may vary due to the size of the organisation. With smaller companies also requiring their research scientists to be responsible for acquiring business through communication with customers and leading in this area.
Science Industry Maintenance Technician - Level 3
ST0249
Science industry maintenance technicians work in a wide range of companies, including, but not exclusively, chemical, petrochemical, polymer, primary and secondary pharmaceutical, biotechnology, formulated products, engineering and nuclear manufacturing. They contribute to the fault free and safe operation of science industry plant by the installation, maintenance, testing and repair of mechanical, electrical equipment and instrumentation. They will be proactive in finding solutions to problems and identifying areas for improving their work environment. As well as core engineering skills, maintenance technicians need to understand and follow working practices that are specific to the safety critical science industry. They may work in varied conditions including using specialist safety equipment, shift work and on sites running 365 day operations. They will be expected to work both individually and as part of a maintenance team. They will be able to work with minimum supervision, taking responsibility for the quality and accuracy of the work they undertake. They may be part of in house maintenance teams or engineering maintenance contractor teams who work for different companies across the science industry.
A Regulatory Affairs Specialist is responsible for developing and implementing strategies that allow a company to legally develop, manufacture, market and supply healthcare and/ or veterinary products. The role critically evaluates the evidence generated during the development and use of the product for its suitability to support obtaining and managing marketing authorizations, CE marks and approvals for clinical studies in line with legal requirements. This role may be performed within an organisation that may range in size from innovative SME businesses to major multinational companies. A Regulatory Affairs Specialist may also work within service companies offering consultancy support to manufacturers or in the relevant competent authorities or Notified Bodies where they will be assisting in the review and assessment of regulatory and technical dossiers prior to issuing a licence.