|
| UKIERI-GSK: AN EFFECTIVE PARTNERSHIP |
|
 |
Besides supporting UKIERI with their funding contribution for pharmaceutical research, GlaxoSmithKline contribute to UKIERI by providing work placement opportunities to bright young chemistry post graduate students, tapped from 50 leading institutions from all parts of India. The students are given exceptional |
opportunities to work on cutting edge research projects at the GSK facilities in the UK many of which contribute
to innovative drug discovery programmes. |
|
|
The UKIERI and GSK team work together closely on this intensive programme, for which a special secretariat is set up in New Delhi at
the beginning of each year. This secretariat coordinates the programme in leading Indian Institutions via specially designed collateral, manages the applications and works with Team GSK for the selection of the students. After an extensive online selection process, senior GSK professionals, Dr Harry A Kelly, Global Operations Manager and Carolyn Mason, Professional Excellence and Global Capability Manager, come down to New Delhi each year, to interview the short listed applicants personally. |
|
Already in its third year, the UKIERI-GSK programme has received 24 excellent students till date, 10 of whom have completed their work placement. The students receive the highest quality of professional exposure to their |
|
 |
Bill Rammell, MP, Minister of State
(Lifelong Learning, Further and Higher Education) addressing the
audience at the UKIERI-GSK
reception at the Foreign Office |
|
|
 |
Dr Harry A Kelly, Carolyn Mason and Anjum Kapur
Kumar, with the UKIERI-GSK work placement
students at the FCO reception
|
|
|
respective streams in R&D and GMS, besides considerable personal development inputs. The third batch of 13 students will begin their work placement in September 2008, taking the total tally to 37 students. |
|
The students have given very positive feedback on having shared the best practise in R&D from a global pharmaceutical leader. They particularly enjoy the collaborative and international environment at GSK. Needless to say, the sights and sounds of the beautiful English countryside are also being savoured immensely. |
| |
The partnership contributes strongly to the overarching UKIERI objective of improving the understanding of education and research between the two countries  |
|
|
|
| |
COMMEMORATING EXCELLENCE IN RESEARCH
RECEPTION AT THE FOREIGN OFFICE, LONDON, FEBRUARY 2008 |
|
 |
Senior GSK Managers, Dr Christine Browne,
Head Technical
Development GMS, with
Dr Malcolm Skingle, Director S&T
Worldwide
Business Development and Dave Allen,
SVP Respiratory Drug Discovery at the FCO reception |
|
|
To commemorate the success of this partnership towards excellence in research, a reception was organised in February 2008 at the Foreign and Commonwealth Office in London. Lord Malloch-Brown, Minister for Asia, Africa and the UN, and Bill Rammell, MP, Minister of State (Lifelong Learning, Further and Higher Education) graced the event.They |
|
acknowledged the concerted efforts made by UKIERI and its Corporate Champions like GlaxoSmithKline, towards forging important education and research linkages between India and the UK. |
|
GlaxoSmithKline's strategic intent to access talent
from different parts of the world towards excellence in research shone through. On the occasion, senior representation came from GSK, the British Council, key UKIERI partners like DIUS, FCO, Shell, important organisations like the Confederation of Indian Industries (CII), the Royal College of Chemistry, the Science Research Councils and the UKIERI academic and research network from several universities and research institutions. |
|
The most positive and powerful symbols of UKIERI were the research placement students themselves, who made high impact presentations and displayed an impressive poster display of the research work they were doing and the impact UKIERI and GSK had made on their lives |
|
|
|
| |
|
GSK SUPPORTS PHARMACEUTICAL RESEARCH
COLLABORATIONS IN UKIERI |
|
GSK has a challenging and inspiring mission: to advance the quality of human life by enabling people to do more, feel better and live longer. With a business dedicated to breaking new ground
in healthcare, GSK invests significant resources
in research and development every year. The
UKIERI-GSK partnership is another step towards this goal. UKIERI utilises a proportion of GSK's funding contribution, to sponsor research awards and fellowships in the fields of biomedical sciences and pharmaceutical research. |
|
One of these significant collaborations, awarded in 2006-2007, is on Cardiovascular Disease, its prevention and origins. The collaboration is between All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) and International Centre for Circulatory Health (ICCH), London. Other institutes that are involved are: National Heart and Lung Institute, London and Faculty of Medicine, Imperial College, London. |
|
Another project is on the role of technology in the prevention of Type-2 diabetes. The collaboration is between Diabetes Research Centre, India and Imperial College, Faculties of Medicine and Engineering. Other UK andIndian institutions that are involved are: |
|
M V Hospital for Diabetes, India, WHO Collaborating Centre for Research, Education and Training in Diabetes, Royapuram, Chennai and St Mary's Hospital, UK. |
|
 |
UKIERI-GSK work placement students of
Cohort I, at work in laboratories in GSK, UK |
|
|
UKIERI has also sponsored one major research award (support of up to £ 500,000) in the field of biomedical sciences. The subject of research is Mathematical and Experimental modelling of animal stress response network. The collaboration is between the University of Nottingham and IIT Kanpur. |
|
The UKIERI-GSK partnership is attempting to make substantive contribution to make the world a better
and a healthier place |
|
|
|
|
| |
|
| EXPERIENCE OF A LIFETIME – FROM THE DIARY OF A UKIERI-GSK STUDENT |
|
|
|
Nilanjana Roy Choudhury, one of the work placement students of UKIERI-GSK Batch II, made a very impressive presentation of her experiences as a UKIERI-GSK trainee, at the commemorative reception in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office. Nilanjana has done post graduation in chemistry
from Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi, one of India's premier institutions. |
|
|
In her own words, Nilanjana has found the GSK experience extremely illuminating. She has got professional exposure of working in an industrial environment. Nilanjana is a trainee medical chemist, working on allergic rhinitis and asthma. |
|
The world-class laboratories and research equipment have given her an excellent opportunity to develop
and apply her expertise to maximum potential. On a personal level, Nilanjana says that she enjoys the clean and serene environment of Stevenage, but always rues the non-existence of nightlife in the town! |
|
Nilanjana was awarded a GSK certificate of merit for
her excellent presentation on her experience as a
UKIERI-GSK work placement researcher |
|
|
|
|
|
