Before coming to Uni I was nervous about moving so far away from home and whether I’d make new friends. It sounds clichéd, but I think everyone has the same worries about starting University! During ‘Freshers Week’, the department holds several academic and social events to help students meet each other and explore campus. This meant that I actually got to make some friends before even starting the course.

The laboratories facilities ECS students get to use are amazing. It’s really cool that we get to use such a wide range of state-of-the-art equipment every day, both for lab work and personal projects. In the electronic project lab areas, people will be working together on coursework and sharing ideas; which creates a really nice working environment.

One of my favourite pieces of work at Uni was my 3rd Year Individual Project. You get a huge sense of accomplishment at the end, after getting to oversee all the technical and management aspects of such a long-term.

I love the variety that an engineering degree offers. You get to learn about so many topics, control systems, analogue design, wireless communications, cyber systems – to name just a few! You can choose the modules that interest you, and specialise as much or little as you like.

Southampton campus has a really nice atmosphere and the city is a great place to live. There’s loads of stuff to do, and it’s all within reasonable distance to campus/halls. The Unilink bus service is decent, and will run until late at night.

Academically, I’ve developed and refined a huge number of general skills; time management, team working, decision making. At school I was always quite quiet and shy, and I think Uni has helped me find my confidence and develop into someone who takes opportunities and makes the most of situations.

The three words I’d use to sum up my experiences so far at Southampton are: improvise, adapt, and overcome.