Mousam Rai
"The most enjoyable aspect of my course was the dissertation. I had the opportunity to do novel research in an area that interested me with a supervisor who shares my passion."
Course
Physics MScGraduation year
2018During my childhood, my elder sister used to bring astronomy books home from her school library, and I remember being mesmerised by the pictures of stars, nebula and planets. As I grew up, my passion to understand the origins of our universe became stronger and this, coupled with my great teachers, made me certain I wanted to pursue physics.
After my degree I worked as an integration tester in a financial technology company, but I always knew I wanted to return to academia at some point. I missed learning about new topics and concepts. I realised that a masters course was the natural next step I needed to take to pursue a career as a researcher, and I chose to study for this at Surrey because it’s an excellent university that is internationally recognised.
I found that the academic staff in the School of Mathematics and Physics were really friendly and approachable. They always made an effort to make some free time during their busy schedule if you needed help, and made sure that you got the best advice possible.
I particularly appreciated the library at Surrey which is open 24 hours a day. I lived on campus so it was good to have a quiet place nearby with great resources that I could go to whenever I liked and study in peace. Also, the fifth floor is reserved for postgraduate students which means you don’t find yourself fighting for space during the exam period.
The most enjoyable aspect of my course was the dissertation. I had the opportunity to do novel research in an area that interested me with a supervisor who shares my passion. Meeting every week to present what I’d found so far, getting feedback and then doing more research was a great experience for me.
I really enjoyed my time at Surrey. While there were definitely challenges, I gained invaluable experience and made lifelong friends. Following my course I applied for a funded PhD in particle physics at the University of Warwick and during my interview, the interviewers showed a lot of interest in my MSc dissertation. I think this played a part in their decision to give me the offer, and I’m now on track towards my career as a researcher.
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