SURE – Sheffield Undergraduate Research Experience

By Muhammad Shuja

Are you not SURE what to do after completing your degree? Are you not SURE if a PhD is the right option for you? Are you not SURE why I’m saying SURE a gazillion times? SUREly, you’ll know it all once you read this blog.

The Sheffield Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE, sorry had to!) is a program run across all the departments at the University of Sheffield where a group of students work on a six-week paid research project over a summer. It is a fantastic opportunity for students to get an insight of what it’s like to pursuing research-based opportunities like a PhD. I myself was part of such a project in the summer of 2017 where I worked in the Department of Physics. My project was to assess the use of thermal cameras to improve building planning and reducing electricity bills in UK households. We were fantastic team of physicists, chemical and software engineers who worked together for six weeks on this amazing project. We built various simulations and models to test our cameras and use those results to present a report, while I worked on building a website for the entire project for future research and surveying purposes (link given below).

A SURE project definitely enhances your CV and your skills to work in a team of people who put their individual skill sets on the table. It also improves your communication skills since you have to ensure that all work is divided among the team with a clear idea of the progress being made.  All projects carried out over the summer are then presented at the SURE showcase in the next year to give all new students an idea of what has been done previously. The showcase then presents awards to the best projects in various categories. I was quite honoured when my team received the award for the ‘Best Networking Project’, since it was one of the few teams who worked with students coming from different disciplines.

For me, personally, this was an amazing experience to explore an entirely new career opportunity, something which I hadn’t considered before. It gives you the confidence of making a sound decision when choosing a career path after graduation.  You get to evaluate whether you’d be more interested in research as an engineer or if you’d prefer working in a team on a more technical project. Unfortunately, for me as a Software Engineer, I’ll prefer sticking to coding projects in a team and telling my friends to restart their computers if they have a problem (trust me, it always works).

Now that you’re SURE about what SURE is, you SUREly would plan to apply to Sheffield to explore these excellent opportunities which SUREly develops your skills and enSUREs that you have a competitive edge in industry once you graduate, which you SUREly will. Please feel free to add the number of SUREs in your head to the point where you start hating me, if that point hasn’t already passed. I’m SURE it has.

Meet our International Engineering Ambassador - Ruxandra Mindru

Last time I was asked to describe my experiences from within a tight time-frame, I wrote a 3-stanza limerick, containing the immortal phrase

“After Electric Castle,

I don’t mind the hassle

Of packing galoshes with flowery skirts.“

Just as my summers are defined by how tired I am at the end of them, my Uni experience is as diverse as it is crowded. The first semester of the first year saw me doing Czech, Mandarin, Gospel, Tango, a web-design course, fake money trading (and earning of a small fake fortune after the USA elections), sneaking into a philosophy class, bouldering, yoga, K-Pop dance, let’s not forget UNIVERSITY… The usual. To understand why, you’ll need to know a few things about me and why I came to Sheffield.

Self-described Youtuber and Enthusiast of Life

Coming from what Romania calls a city (100k people) and my London-bred colleagues define as a village, there were limited opportunities for extracurricular activities, so I learned foreign languages, I started working as a freelance video editor, I wrote scripts and stories, all because, honestly, it would have been too easy to get bored. My laptop became my weapon against the apathy of Eastern Europe, my window into a world where people went to London Comic Con and met Benedict Cumberbatch on the street.

Therefore my passion for tech. Studying in England had always been the plan. Math became my one true love in my final year of high school, psychology already thrilled me, and, since I enjoyed coding and puzzles and challenges, coming to Sheffield for CompSci was the natural step.

Sheffield

Between Warwick and Sheffield, the decision ultimately came down to finances. You can do so much more in Sheffield when you’re on a budget, from accommodation to theatre nights and dance classes. London and Edinburgh are just two hours away, Cambridge is within reach, flights to Oslo are 40 pounds, it’s ideal. (I’m telling you to come to Sheffield and listing all the places you can run away to. I’m really selling it, am I not?)

Point is: it’s a good city. It’s safe. It’s lively. It’s supportive of its students and their dreams. It’s got lots of trees, by some people, and better weather than the rest of England. You may be in your last year of high-school, thinking “All I like is video games and walking my dog, what can I possibly do at Uni?” Oh boy, read the first paragraph again. It’s much harder to find something you can't-do in Sheffield than the vice versa.

The choice

When making the choice, remember: you’re not supposed to already be an expert at it. The Uni’s entire point is that they’ll teach you how to build airplanes or split the atom or dissect Shakespeare mercilessly. “Appetite comes eating”. I had no idea what coding-related-thingy I could create when I came here, but now my head is buzzing with start-up ideas and networking potential. Choose what you’d wake up at 5am for. Create. Experiment. You’re coming to an environment with plenty of safety nets. You’re in England, mother of all European possibilities.

The journey is all about loving what you do, be it art or engineering. Once you’ll find yourself in Sheffield, looking after yourself, the future suddenly stops being “what my parents want for me” and becomes just “what I make it”. The endless possibility is not a myth. It’s a daily reality.

A reality which I love and bring to life with all my might, even if I do end up with little sleep and a blood stream of green tea. I’m a restless spirit, the kind that feels better in the train than in her apartment, at the top of a mountain during a blizzard than in a warm bed. I can do both, I like both, but why settle for the easy when the difficult gives you such an amazing story to tell? 

The #1 Students’ Union in the UK

Written By: Haseeb Iqbal

Run for the students, by the students! One of the best highlights at the University of Sheffield is the Sheffield Students’ Union which has made its students proud by being ranked as the best SU in the country for NINE YEARS consecutively! So, what is the Students’ Union? And what makes ours better than the rest? Well, you’re about to find out.

Aim
The aim of the Students’ Union is to represent all the students at a local and national level, making sure all students are catered for in order to provide them with the best possible student experience throughout their time at Sheffield.

SU Officers
The SU is run by a fantastic team of SU officers which are elected every year by the 26,000 student population of the University of Sheffield. Their job is to make sure that the SU runs smoothly, and to represent the student voice!

Services and Facilities
The SU makes every possible effort that every single student has a wonderful time as a student in Sheffield. Hence, students are provided with a wide range of services in the SU and a few of them are as follows:
SSID: The Student Services Information Desk is your student guide at Sheffield, where the staff is always there to guide you if you are unsure about anything, literally anything!
Student Advice Centre: The SAC aims to provide support to students who are facing any difficulties during their time at Sheffield. Whether it’s mental stress, homesickness, or social anxiety, the SAC always offers a helping hand.
JobShop: This the place where students can go if they’re looking from employment during or after their studies. They are more than happy to assist you in job applications, interviews and even advertise vacancies for students to avail.
Activities and Sports Zone: This is the perfect place for students to get involved within the University, the SU and even the local community. You can choose from a list of activities to go for, all the way for volunteering for a local charity or learning a new language through our ‘Give it a Go’ service.
Box Office: The box office if our one-stop-shop to get tickets for all the events happening around the SU, whether it’s a day trip to Cambridge or a Give it a Go Salsa class.
Film Unit: The Film Unit organizes cheap screenings of both the latest movies and the old classics for a truly catered experience.
Foundry: The Foundry organizes the SU’s very own night outs, hosts competitions like the annual Battle of the Bands and has welcomed quite a few well-renowned DJs over the years. It has also been nominated for the ‘Best Night Outs in Sheffield’ award.

Societies and clubs
The SU also has a list of more than 200 societies ranging from cultural and sports so that all students, regardless of their interests and hobbies, can find a variety of extra-curricular activities and socials to be a part of. However, if you can’t find anything of interest, you can start your very own student society!

With a wonderful range of facilities provided by a friendly group of staff and students, the SU is the pride of all Sheffield students during and even after their time at Sheffield. With a diverse student population and an exposure which is second to none, the SU has provided the perfect platform for all students to gain a variety of skills while having an extraordinary time at Sheffield.

More information about the Sheffield SU: http://su.sheffield.ac.uk/

Working as an International Engineering Ambassador - By Haseeb Iqbal

With the year coming to an end, I felt like it was only fair to let the world know about one of the best experiences I’ve had as a student in Sheffield, which was working as an International Engineering Ambassador. Being a person who is always on the lookout for opportunities to get involved, I was quite excited when I applied for the role and then got short-listed for an interview which finally ended up with me successfully landing the role. Ever since then, I’ve had amazing opportunities to develop a wide range of skills, meet amazing people and most importantly, get loads of free food!

Our team of International Engineering Ambassadors is a large group of current engineering students. Our aim is to work together to use various means to reach out to prospective students, and giving them a taste of Sheffield’s life as an international engineering student. As an IEA, I got involved with the film team who are responsible for making short films which are then used for marketing and promotional purposes. I got to be in charge of the video editing, and even though I was a newbie, I was offered lots and lots of support from my team, which motivated me to work harder and also gave me an opportunity to polish my teamwork skills. The IEAs are in charge of the blogs you are reading right now, we also get to help out and organize University Open Days and course presentations for prospective students. Events like these enable you to engage in conversation with new people which is an excellent way of increasing your communication skills. Apart from that, I got to experience the sense of satisfaction with every prospective student I was able to help out while working at these events. To me, it feels like I’m giving back to the University for the support I received as a prospective and a current student.

Before you get bored of all the work I’ve had to do, let me tell you the fun bits. We do quite a few socials over the year where our awesome supervisor makes sure we are treated to delicious desserts and fun games! We get the chance to meet all the ambassadors from various departments of Engineering, talk about our personal experiences and also share insights about our courses and departments. Working as an IEA has been a wonderful and gifting experience for me. It is something I proudly highlight on my CV and continue to look forward to more opportunities as I go forward in my journey as an IEA at Sheffield University.

Christmas Break School Visit

Written By Ioan Alexandru Herdea

Holidays are the time of the year when most students go back home. Some of them to spend time with their families or just to go back to meet up with old friends. What is guaranteed, is our aim to maximise our opportunities in those short time slots.

The last break in this academic year was at Christmas, some of us IEAs headed back home. As we love the University of Sheffield so much, it is inevitable that we want to tell others about our life here and about the Faculty of Engineering. I had already mentally prepared my talk about Sheffield in readiness to answer questions received from my family about my time here.

I hoped to share my experience about the first semester with students at my old high school and others schools if possible. I have to admit that I did not simply go straight into classes and start talking to the students! Before leaving Sheffield, members of the IEA organised a training session on carrying out presentations in schools. This excellent and informative session, was run by Marta Grzybek and Abhinav Kongari. Plus, I got a polo shirt with the UoS and the IEA Logo on it, which is amazing!!! Just imagine the feeling of walking among old high school mates and teachers with that emblazoned on your chest.

In preparation for my visit I created my own PowerPoint presentation. It was pretty straightforward and didn’t take long, as I only had about 45 minutes speaking time. My talk was not for promotional or marketing purposes but to inform students about my personal experiences, including what Sheffield is like as a city, student life, my course, being an IEA, the process of enrolment, and of course, talking about our much loved Diamond building.

Now…I think it is time to tell you about how the presentations actually went. Well, I was very surprised to find out that at least 30 students were interested in what I was going to talk about. This happened at each presentation and was carried out in three different places. I have to mention that, from my own point of view, opening yourself up in front of a such a large group of people may be a bit scary and you may be nervous. However, for me it was the complete opposite. The experience gave me so much confidence, to know that my words were so interesting to others. The fact that I was studying abroad at such a high ranking institution, the University of Sheffield, provoked a lot of interest. I began my presentation by going through slides with a lot of enthusiasm. As I had rehearsed what I was going to say, I was able to keep an eye on my audience and noticed that they were all avidly listening. When it came to the Q and A session, there were many raised hands. I was asked all types of questions from fees to how much I spend on parties!

Finally, I shall not forget about the last visit I made. The audience was made up of rugby players and as I am quite a slender person, and could be described as a ‘stick’, when I was surrounded by them, it reminded me of a Laurel and Hardy film, but the feeling was good. This is because I am also a professional player, I know that participating in team sports, helps to build a good character, so I was sure they would be quiet and they would pay attention.

  

Now that a few months have passed by, I realize what an amazing experience it was. I feel so proud to represent my University everywhere I go and I would strongly recommend everyone to do this. This experience can give you so much confidence and provide a lot of fulfilment during your academic years.

Places To Eat At In Sheffield

By Oluchi Emenike 

Do you plan on having an event in Sheffield – a birthday, reunion, graduation party, get together, a date, just want to destress and all or you basically just want to eat out in Sheffield? Well, here is the article for you!

First of all, as a student in Sheffield, in fact as a student in the UK, you need UNiDAYS; click on the link to join for amazing student discounts https://www.myunidays.com/. This is important for every student especially when you are on a budget; why be a student if you can’t enjoy the perks of being one?? You could also get coupons and the likes from wowcher or groupon (for other activities including paintballing and spa days etc.) Then you can also sign up to restaurants because most of them send offers to their customers particularly on your birthday.

As an organized person, I would always tell you to plan ahead – this includes booking a table and planning to be there on time specifically during the festive seasons.

So now on places to eat at in Sheffield,  I’ll start with my favourite - the Italian restaurants – well I’ve only been to 3 of them a total of 12 times (don’t judge me please). There’s Piccolino – the fanciest one, request to seat on the terrace if you happen to go there on a date; then Zizzi, they have the loveliest garlic bread I have ever had and there is Ask Italian which is always quiet when I am there even though there are other people dining there.

Then there are the Asian restaurants – a lot of them around; you will definitely have to eat at Cosmo at least once during your stay as a student at Sheffield – it is a buffet. Ubuffet is another one – I do not really like this one but then it is different strokes for different folks. There is also Baan Thai, Thai Thai Ka, Hui Wei, Wagamama and WasabiSabi; they all have lovely food and these are just the ones I have tried so explore and well, google is your friend.

Sheffield also has some Latin American restaurants; we have Las Iguanas, Revolucion de Cuba which also serves great cocktails and on Thursday evenings there’s a lot of salsa going on, and Chiquito (this is the one I am visiting next). Tropeiro is another wonderful restaurant where you get to try different types of meat until you are tired but unfortunately the one in Sheffield has been closed for a while and I have no idea if they plan on reopening anytime soon.

TGI Fridays is amazing, you should have their stack of ribs with Jack Daniel’s sauce and SMOKE barbecue is another amazing place to eat at. Lucky Fox is perfect for when you feel like having pancakes and the likes. In all these, let us not forget Nando’s with their extra hot wings.

You can also try Yates’s, Wetherspoon, Browns, Handmade burger, Harvester, Five Guys and many more. Just know that Sheffield has a variety of restaurants so there will always be some place to try. However, I have not come across African restaurants in Sheffield, so if you really want to try some Nigerian goodness like the real Jollof rice, small chops etc. send me an email!

Student Hotspots: Let's Sushi by Rishi Parwani

For those of you that know me, you’ll know that when it comes to sushi I’m slightly obsessed. And for those of you that don’t know me, I will (to your misfortune) become your best friend if you get me some sushi! I’ve tried nearly every single sushi joint in Sheffield but there’s one that I’ve surprisingly never been to before. What’s more surprising is that it’s so close to the Diamond that I’m quite embarrassed I went for the first time just last week.

So what did I end up doing on an hour long break in between labs? With a few fellow sushi-loving course mates, I went to ‘Let’s Sushi’ on Division Street. I’ve said this before and I’ll say it again, Division Street has an impressive list of eateries in the quirkiest of settings, there’s always something interesting food-wise. ‘Let’s Sushi’ is located right at the end of Division Street just a minute away from Sheffield City Hall. We arrived just in time for opening and quickly grabbed a table knowing how busy it gets for lunch.

What struck me about Let’s Sushi was its prices. I’m not proud of how much I’ve spent at other restaurants (it’s my favourite food guys please don’t judge me) but I have to say that these prices were the most affordable I’ve seen for sushi, such a refreshing change. ‘Let’s Sushi’ offers packaged sushi platters or separate Maki rolls that can be ordered from the menu. I decided to go for the Mixed Maki Platter (Maki is just another word for roll in Japanese) and on top of that I got something that I found really unique.

So if you look to the left of the picture below, you’ll see a salad of sorts. That salad is made up of ‘scrap’ sushi rolls. Basically, when you make sushi, you start off with making the roll and then cutting it into smaller pieces. You always end up with pieces at the end which don’t look as good as the rest of the rolls and most restaurants tend to throw them away. However, I was really impressed with this item on the menu and how ‘Let’s Sushi’ uses these end rolls and puts them into a salad instead of throwing them away. And you know what? It was absolutely delicious and so filling. You know what’s even better? It costed just £1.45. You read correctly! My inner student was very satisfied.

My mixed maki platter was perfect as well and oh-so-reasonable at £5. It had a combination of California Maki as well as normal maki rolls. For those of you that don’t know, California Makis basically just have rice on the outside rather than on the inside as you’d normally expect. The platter had rolls consisting of crabstick, cucumbers, salmon and tempura and it definitely fuelled me up for my 4 hour Electronics lab!

I have to say, I wish I found this place earlier. With its interesting concepts, delicious sushi and very reasonable prices – I can definitely see myself becoming a regular at ‘Let’s Sushi’ and I’m already looking forward to my next visit. So there you have it, affordable sushi very close by to the uni buildings!

Location: 14 Division Street, Sheffield, S1 4GF

Timings: 11:30am – 10pm on weekdays and open till 10:30pm on weekends

Meet Our International Engineering Ambassador - Haiqi Huang (Lillith)

Course: Material Science and Chemical Engineering (BEng)

Nationality: Chinese

My name is Haiqi Huang, you can also just call me Lillith for an easier pronunciation. I am from the South West of China which is famous for Pandas and Hotpot. I’ve been here for a couple of years. After graduating from my High School in my hometown, I came to study here in Sheffield.

You may be wondering, what it’s like to study here and what the routines are like?

What is it like studying in the University of Sheffield?

-Teaching activities: lectures, seminars, tutorials

We often have three types of classes: lectures, seminars and tutorials. You may get some general and basic ideas about your subject in the lectures and get further developments or discussions during the seminar. Tutorials help you understand the content.  Experiments, or laboratory activities are also essential for our engineering students. The content of the lab is determined by the subject you are studying.

-Assessments: exams, essays, online tests

To estimate our study skills, there are various assessments such as formal exams, essays, reports and online tests that students are required to complete. They may carry a different weight in the entire grade. Despite the grades being beneficial to your future career, as you work on your assessments, you gain a lot of skills and experience.

- Group cooperation: normal group projects, presentations, Global Engineering Challenging Week

Group cooperation is regarded as one of the most practical things you learn at the University. You will encounter this kind of opportunity with some assessments like poster presentations, lab practicals, or certain group projects such as the “Global Engineering Challenge Week”. During these weeks you get the chance to explore various roles in groups and gain wonderful academic and social skills!

About Material Science and Engineering

-What is it?

Materials Science and Engineering is a subject that mainly focuses on discovering or designing new materials (mainly solid materials) and is based on analytical thinking including subjects like physics, chemistry and mathematics. It contains a wide range of science fields depending on different research areas. For instance, you could find that nanomaterials (one of the most popular topics), is based more on quantum mechanics to describe the behaviour especially in a nanoscale.

-Why I chose to study this subject

I chose to study this subject based on the grades I attained in High School. I was aware that I did really well in science subjects. I particularly enjoyed doing chemistry and physics. Furthermore, I prefered to develop more ‘practical’ skills at University. Materials Science fulfills my ideal career preferences.

- Other engineering courses

Apart from Materials Science, there are many engineering courses to choose from. If you are enthusiastic about science subjects but would like to learn more about artificial operations, have a look at the specific course information on the departmental website. You will find  detailed descriptions about the various courses, including all the subjects you will learn in each semester and the grades you need to apply for each course.

How is daily life here in Sheffield?

-Pace

There is no need to panic about having a stressful life here. It won’t be like that! You may have more free time than you think outside lectures. Essentially, you should dictate the pace of your life. Arrange things you need to accomplish scientifically and balance the time you would like to chill or to study.

-Variety

Besides studying, you may also take part in a variety of social activities. The University provides welcome events during orientation week and also some special festivities. You can join the societies you are interested in at the beginning of the semester. They will host more meetings or parties during the semester and in vacation time. Also, you may find some interesting groups you can join in the Students Union (like me, I joined the IEA’s). This will give you fantastic experience during your University life.

Some tips for managing your routines better

-Meet more people

This helps you to get familiar to the new environment sooner. You can also make a lot of new friends!

-Manage your schedule

After you get used to your new surroundings, you may want to improve the quality of your life and study as much as possible. A scientific approach to time management is very helpful. Moreover, being punctual is essential here. You are not expected to be late for any appointments or deadlines, this could result in your work being marked zero!!!

Thank you for your reading this, hopefully my blog can help some of you out there!