By pursuing an engineering course, I am on my way to bringing my ideas & designs to reality.
Why did you choose your course?
I am pursuing a mechanical engineering course. My passion for the world of automobiles or the automotive industry, in general, was my strongest motivator for pursuing this course, as I believed it would assist me in achieving my dreams of making serious contributions to the automotive industry. By pursuing an engineering course, I am on my way to bringing my ideas or designs to a reality.
What have you enjoyed most about your course so far?
I personally find the projects we get to work on as part of our modules, Global Engineering Challenge, Engineering You're Hired, etc. to be really interesting. The projects are very similar to industrial ones and I believe that really prepares us well for the industry.
Are you part of any student societies?
I was part of "Project Phoenix" during my second year. It was a really interesting project with the aim of constructing a full scale 2 seater aircraft. I was part of the fuselage team.
Why did you decide to do an industrial placement?
There are several advantages to an industrial placement:
1. Helps you to be graduate job ready, makes you stand out from everyone else who doesn't have experience in the industry)
2. Helps you figure out your ideal career path
3. Opportunity to put academic knowledge into practise
4. Amazing Pay
Where did you do your placement?
My placement was with BMW Group at the MINI Plant Oxford (The MINI Headquarters)
Tell us a little about what you did?
I was in the energy management team and we were responsible for energy optimisation projects, energy forecasting, monthly invoice verification, scheme compliance, facility projects, budgeting and maintaining monitoring systems.
What did you enjoy most about your industry placement experience?
Since I enjoy driving a lot, the fact that I could rent a car out for free from work was the highlight of my placement. Being an international student, I had not been to many places in the UK. This free rental scheme gave me a chance to explore several parts of the UK, which was amazing.
How did your placement influence your plans for your future career?
I had always been confused between wanting a research focused career or an engineering management one. Through my placement, I was able to realise that I enjoy the management side of engineering much more than I thought I would.
What do you plan to do after completing your degree?
My long term goal is to contribute to the automotive industry in a significant manner, from an engineering perspective. Securing a graduate scheme with a world's leader in the automotive industry would be my immediate goal on completing my degree.
What advice would you give to someone considering studying mechanical engineering?
Go for it ! Engineers and scientists are constantly changing the world with inventions and solutions that improve people's lives. Being a part of this is definitely something worth working towards.