Blending theory with practicals

A student shares how studying Civil engineering in the United Kingdom enabled her to gain the necessary practical experience to succeed in the field

I completed my Bachelor’s in Civil Engineering from the University of Pune, India. Having studied in India for most of my life, I wanted to pursue my Master’s from elsewhere. Quite honestly, I was not sure about which career path I should be progressing after completing my undergraduate degree. However, after a few productive consultations with my father, I became interested in studying Water engineering. Thus started my journey with the University of Strathclyde, UK. I chose to study MSc civil engineering with industrial placement.

The best part of my course was that it had all the water modules I was looking for. Additionally, I found that the course is well-structured with a balance between the
modules, research and a summer placement as well! To elaborate further, my department assisted me in finding the right placement to work on.

The Department of Civil and Environmental engineering at Strathclyde has a multidisciplinary faculty which is engaged with many leaders from various fields within civil engineering. This gives the students a great prospect towards networking and finding pathways in their careers. What’s more, the learning was made easier with the excellent facilities ranging from laboratories with specialist equipment to well-equipped classrooms.

I spent my summer placement exploring the infrastructure required to provide suitable shoreside utility services to ‘TS Queen Mary’, a steam-ship currently under restoration. During this, I was a part of the designs team that worked on designing a range of cable and pipe networks for the ship. It was a wonderful experience as I developed many skills and knowledge during this time and got a chance to build my professional network.

Teaching at Strathclyde was invaluable and complemented my practical learning. The professors here give equal importance to the classroom seminars as well as independent learning, something which is crucial according to me. Before arriving
at Strathclyde, I had little knowledge of how to conduct the right research but today, I feel more confident. Over time, my research skills have sharpened.

My time spent in the campus has been fabulous so far. I have made many friends from different parts of the world- something that will be cherished forever. Also, living away from my folks, the city has taught me to be independent and more responsible in many ways.