Carys

What do you enjoy most about Surrey?

I really enjoy the extra-curricular societies and clubs. I am a part of the hockey club, which is a great community and allows me to stay healthy. Also, I am Vice President of Peryton Space, the university's space society. We build rockets, rovers, satellites and engines allowing us to apply theories learned in class to real designs and products. Peryton Space also gives you exposure to the wider space community, especially through its involvement with the Surrey Space Centre. 

One aspect of Peryton I enjoy is the competitions with other universities to test our final products. Competition days are usually held in interesting locations, like Airbus or RAL Space, and it’s a great opportunity to work with people from different disciplines and backgrounds and discuss ideas. 

Taking part in these societies has allowed me to spend time with like-minded people with similar passions and broadened my social circle outside of my flat mates or course mates.

 "I had the opportunity to travel around the US and surrounding territories with new friends. I am lucky that I met such wonderful people on my year abroad and we still meet up, even though we live in different places across the world."

Tell us about your Professional Training placement

I completed a Professional Training Year at Airbus Defence and Space in Stevenage where I learned so much about the space industry. I was in the future programmes department for science and earth observation, which meant I was able to take part in several projects that included satellites, rover and planetary landers, while also working on internal development projects.

A highlight from my Professional Training placement was working on designs for a Lunar Rover and from this work, securing a thesis project with Airbus for my final year.

I also studied abroad during my second year at the University of Central Florida (UCF), which was a great experience. I matched my modules to what I would have been studying at Surrey so I was able to learn in a different environment but didn't feel behind when I got back. Outside of term time, I had the opportunity to travel around the US and surrounding territories with new friends. I am lucky that I met such wonderful people on my year abroad and we still meet up, even though we live in different places across the world.

What do you want to do when you graduate?

When I graduate, I would like to return to my placement company, Airbus Defence and Space to work in one of their offices in mainland Europe. I hope to return to the future programmes department in either science, earth observation or exploration as I would like to continue as a systems engineer.

My time in Peryton Space as Vice President and as a team member for various competitions has shown me that systems engineering is the field of study that I am most suited to and enjoy greatly. My thesis has also developed my interest in the Lunar environment, so working on projects that are destined for the moon is my long-term goal.

What advice would you give to students thinking of studying your course?

Attend the tutorials because they give you invaluable contact time with your professors. Likewise, I have found that our tutorials deepen my understanding of a particular topic as we work through exercises in smaller groups and can spend more time discussing what we don't understand.

It’s important to find ways to apply your course knowledge outside of the normal curriculum as it helps to deepen understanding by putting what you have learned in the classroom into practice. I did this by joining Peryton, which I highly recommend, but you could also turn your hand to a small independent project, such as learning how to program an Arduino.

Finally, being a student at Surrey gives you access to many software packages, for free, that you won't have at your disposal when you leave university. Take advantage of this by spending some time on the software and discover what they can do before you move to the working world.