PhD Industry Internships

The Photonics & Quantum Accelerator can support PhD Internships, where the student can work in the photonics and quantum industry in Central Scotland. This is an opportunity to gain experience and skills from working in one of Scotland’s cutting-edge companies.

How it works:

  • You work full time or part time in a company or non-academic organisation based in Central Scotland. The project must be in photonics, or quantum using photonics technologies.
  • You gain new experience of commercial or third-sector R&D.
  • The period should be typically one to six months (full time or part time).
  • The company is your employer and pays your salary during the internship
  • If you are currently a PhD student, you will need to obtain a suspension of studies for the duration of the internship and you need to obtain the agreement of your supervisor.

The PQA can support you in finding a company where you can do an Internship during your PhD. We are working with industry to find suitable placement opportunities.

If you are interested in a PhD Industry Internship contacts us at: enquiries@photonicsaccelerator.ac.uk

Internship experience

Hear from Claudio about his four-month internship with Optos, a leading Scottish provider of retinal imaging devices, while he was a PhD student at the University of Glasgow. Claudio now works as a Principal Systems Engineer at a global security company.

What were the benefits of the internship; what did you learn?

“It was basically a soft introduction to how industry worked. I learned the industrial approach, which is very different from the academic approach. The way you do things is stricter and more controlled, and you need to take into account how much money and time is spent on each task.

Obviously, you work in a team, which may not necessarily be the case when you’re doing a PhD. In essence, you need to work on your social skills, but also on your time management and reporting skills. Being part of a team definitely helped to make me aware of the soft skills I needed – which skills I had and which ones needed brushing up.

Another thing that I learned was doing risk assessments. Risk assessment is part of the work I do at the moment, so that experience definitely helped.”

Did you enjoy the internship?

“I did enjoy it. I have to say, I consider myself a lab rat to some extent, so being in the lab almost every day was the most enjoyable part.”

Did you know you wanted to have a career in industry?
“I was undecided, so the internship was like dipping my toe in. It was good to get an impression of working in industry. So, when I did decide to switch to industry, I made an informed decision, rather than just jumping into something entirely new.”

Would you recommend doing an internship to PhD students and PDRAs?
“Yes, it’s an experience either way – regardless of whether you enjoy it or not. You’ll find out whether you want to stay in academia or jump into industry. It also gives you a feel for what industry standards are, and how you can improve university standards.

At Optos, being in a lab with lots of people skilled in optics has helped me in the long run. I gained a better understanding and more manual skills in optics. It was the point where I started to consider working in industry more seriously.”

FAQ

  • I am interested in the scheme, but I have not yet identified a company
    • A non-exhaustive list of photonics companies is available on the Photonics Scotland website. We may be able to help you to find a company – email us for further advice stating your skills and any details about the kind of internship you are seeking.
  • I have a company in mind, but I’m not sure if it is eligible.
    • The company or organisation should be based in Central Scotland and is probably already active in photonics and quantum technologies.
  • What kinds of project are suitable?
    • This is very flexible. Often internships are focused on Knowledge Exchange or feasibility studies in an area of interest to the company/organisation and the intern. Projects must aim to enhance the skills of the intern.
  • What contribution is required by the company?
    • The company needs to cover your salary during the internship
  • How will I be employed?
    • You will be employed by the company.
  • Can I be an intern if I’m not a British citizen?
    • This will depend on the Visa you have and whether is allows you to work in the UK. We recommend you check with your university to ensure this is possible. The company may still have concerns around security and complying with other regulations.
  • What are the issues with Intellectual Property (IP)?
    • These are agreed case by case. However, ownership of foreground and background IP is normally related to the investment by the company: if the company pays 100% of the internship costs, they would normally own all foreground IP.
  • I am interested in being a PQA intern, but I would like to conduct it part time.
    • This is possible (a) with the agreement of your supervisor and (b) the consent of the host company
  • What are the aims of the PQA?