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 – Aznie Othman

1. Background 

Hi!

​My name is Aznie Othman ​and I am ​from Malaysia which is in Southeast Asia. Currently, I am studying Electrical and Electronic Engineering and am ​in my second year. ​I am in the middle of ​a ​circuits and machines module.  I ​have also joined ​the university’s football and futsal societies. Besides that, I love singing and cultural dancing and was able to perform at an International Cultural Evening organized by 

the International Students’ Committie. I have been ​a member of the International Engineering Ambassador (IEA) scheme since my ​first year which has provided me with many wonderful experiences across the university.

2. Why engineering?

I have really enjoyed​ studying Physics since high school, playing around with electrical machinery​ really excites me and I am eager to discover how the​se incredible things work. ​I was inspired by my brother who​

​ ​is an electrical and electronic engineer and I always ​found his work fascinating. I am planning to work with him and expand his small company ​so it becomes more successful. Moreover, electrical and electronic has been a demand in this highly ​technological ​world where the ​internet is everything.

3. Why UoS?

Apart from being voted the best Student Union in ​the ​UK, ​the ​UoS is most highly ranked for my course. In addition to this, the style of teaching really suits my needs. The Diamond building was established in 2015 and the facilities and equipment are first class . When I started in my first year, I was one of the first students to be able to operate the amazing machinery and use all the facilities. I was attracted to the UoS after reading many excellent reviews by more senior students.

4. Teaching and study methods

​Throughout the course students are helped by module tutors and lab demonstrators and there are also many very approachable lecturers. In addition to this, if you require more help with your course there are ​teaching aid centres where you can just walk in and ask for assistance. ​Every first and second year student is supervised by a personal tutor who will help with any problems. Currently, in my second year, ​I am working on an ​industrial project with ARUP ​where I am able to apply the theory I have learnt on my course.

5.  The City of Sheffield

Sheffield has one of the most beautiful green cities which is and surrounded by spectacular countryside. ​The City Centre is perfect for students and has everything you might need within easy reach. Sheffield is also rated as one of the safest city in UK so ​going out at night has never been a problem. Living costs​ are pretty reasonable  compared to big cities like London and Manchester. Nevertheless, the best thing about 

Sheffield is the friendliness of the people, ​which includes the locals and internationals.

6. ​The ​Benefits of UoS

​

The ​UoS offers a wide range of courses​ especially in engineering​, with all students having access to the latest cutting edge facilities. In addition to studying here​​ students can enhance their experience by choosing to join 

a ​huge range of societies and sports​ to choose from​. The UoS promotes a healthy international spirit among

​the students, therefore as an international student, I have always felt welcomed to engage in all activities across the University.

7. After ​my ​degree

I am planning to work with my brother ​but also maintain an interest in research and development  particularly within the ​electronics sector. I hope to work on business proposals and projects with other large companies to broaden my network. I may also do some part time lecturing or tutoring in ​Universities or colleges as I have a strong passion for educating others.

8. Advice

Make sure you research the course that you are interested in and select the one that you believe you will enjoy 

​the most. Find the most suitable accommodation, mentors and ​societies so you can make the most of your student life in University of Sheffield.       

The Course Choosing Conundrum

By Haider Janjua

One of the most important decisions that you make after your high school is to select what you want to study for your bachelors. This decision affects your whole life so it should be a well thought out and wise decision.

Having gone through the process myself, I have thought what advice would have been beneficial for me as far as choosing the course is concerned. So I have written the following points that should be taken into consideration.

In my opinion, the decision should be made during the summer after high school first year examinations. It would leave enough time for you to then concentrate on how to achieve the required grades for the chosen subject area.

The first thing that you have to ask yourself is, whether you are passionate about a particular course/ field or not? If you are passionate about something, already know a great deal about the subject area, you don’t have to go any further. Just work on getting the required grades and go for it.

But if you don’t have a particular preference then you have to follow a process to choose the right field of study. Most of the students already know the general area that they want to choose and have chosen their A Level/High School subjects accordingly. The most important thing that should be done is to research every possible degree course that you can apply according to your subjects. It would be a good idea to make notes for that. Write the degree course on top followed by a brief description. Add all of the modules that you will have to study and a brief description about them. In the end and it is an important parameter, you should include the details about the job prospects.

Research is important as you might find something that you never knew before but is quite interesting. Before coming to the university, I didn’t know that there were engineering courses such as Automatic Control and Systems Engineering, Materials Engineering and Bio Engineering.

The next thing to do is to think about your strengths. Which subjects do you find the easiest? Even decide between subjects like maths and physics. Now choose the courses from your research which have the related modules to the subjects that you like. For example, if you find maths and chemistry quite easy the related courses that you can choose are maths, chemistry, chemical engineering, civil engineering and material engineering. If you like biology and yet you like maths bioengineering could be chosen.

For the next phase, in order to further narrow down your options, think of what would you like to do? Never choose a particular area just because your parents might want you to do that or you think that it would have better job prospects or it is termed as a worthy subject. Never choose something just because you feel like choosing that, always do research about the subject and choose accordingly.

By this time you would have narrowed your options down to two or three areas. If you know someone who is studying /has studied the particular courses, ask their opinion. It is because the person already studying the particular course has more knowledge about the area than you can have even after doing extensive research. Also think about the job prospects at this stage. Is it easier to get a job or not? Think about your home country and whether the course has good scope in your country.

In the end, use your gut feeling to choose from the final two/three choices and may the odds be always in your favour!

Brains at work: First-year students ‘rebuild’ the human body

 Our IEA Saylee Jangam has recently featured in an article by the Hindustan Times. It gives a broad description of her work with her group in a research project under the bio-engineering department that won them second-prize in the first-year category. Read the full article here or click on the article above. 

Meet our International Engineering Ambassadors: Dami

Name: Dami

Department: Engineering

Course: BEng Chemical and Biological Engineering

Nationality: Nigerian

What was your favourite subject in school?

I enjoyed maths and chemistry.

How did you decide what degree course to take?

I have a thing for problem solving. Initially I was debating on either forensic chemistry, mathematics or chemistry. While I was researching these 3 degree programs, I came across chemical engineering. I was excited as it involves both maths and chemistry.

What advice would you give to people about to choose a university course?

Do lots of research, there are many degrees out there. Make sure it is along the line of your interest because you might get frustrated sometimes; your interest will make you stay enthusiastic.

What inspired you/Who inspired you to follow this route?

The continuous study of both maths and chemistry through this route.

What do you particularly enjoy and why?

I enjoyed the global engineering challenge week. It was like experiencing a glimpse of a life of an engineer. I was put in a group and given a life situation in order to find a solution. Also, it is an opportunity to meet new friends in other engineering discipline.

Best job/most fun/most fulfilling/challenges.

So far, my favourite job would be conducting accommodation tours. I enjoy doing this as I get to interact with prospective students; I discover interesting things about people while doing this. Also, the pay is motivating...haha!

How is studying your subject or methods of learning different at university than at school?

There are less teaching hours at university compared to school. I attend lab sessions weekly and reports must be submitted within a week prior to the day of the lab session. I observe more self-study at university compared to school.

What are your plans for the future/dreams/goals?

At the moment, I am considering either working in a food, pharmaceutical or oil and gas industry. Hopefully, I will own a small scale oil and gas company in my home country. I plan to go on to masters degree after my graduation.

What do you like to do when you are not working on your degree?

I love volunteering in a young people’s environment. I am a huge fan of sci-fi serial movies. I recently took up swimming classes and gym sessions.