Ankur Banerjee

Nationality:Indian
Degree:2nd Year BEng (hons) Electronics and Computer Engineering
Quote:

"When I was looking at universities I wasn't just looking at UK universities, but what really attracted me to Surrey was the sandwich course option.  Electronics is a really wide field and the sandwich year placement is really something useful.  In the ranking tables for EE, Surrey was the highest ranked one that offered the placement year, therefore the choice was very clear to me.

I met with a Surrey representative, Dr Peter Marshall in New Delhi.  By that time I already had my offers from other universities but I think that meeting went a long way.  Surrey was the university I was going to go for, but after I had the chat with him, that cemented the feeling.

In terms of accommodation the sort of university experience you have elsewhere is dormitories, like in India and the US.  But this is a close knit family feel of staying in a house.  It's different.  I live in Stag Hill on campus and I have ten housemates. I don't cook, that’s one of the things I thought I would have time for but I am involved with lots of societies so I don't have time.  I wouldn't say its hard to live away from home, but it's a new experience.  I do my own washing and ironing which I didn't have to do at home.  But, I really don't mind that.  When you grow up in life you have to do it, so why not start now?

Living in Guildford is a real big change because New Delhi is such a big city.  You never really walk from one place to another, whereas now the town centre is less than a 20 minute walk from my house in Stag Hill.  I do miss the big city feeling sometimes but then I really like the small town feeling this has, especially the greenery you have here."