Student Testimonials

What is your current or most recent job title? And what does your role entail?

I am currently a student in my fourth year of an integrated Masters course, but my most recent position was a summer research internship at Space Park Leicester. During the internship, I was part of a team contributing to the Double-Walled Isolator project, which is a key component of the Mars Sample Mission led by the European Space Agency. I focused on the robotics and related components of the project.

This was a very insightful and rewarding experience as it allowed me to apply my academic knowledge to a high impact project. It was also a great opportunity to share my robotics and software knowledge with people from different backgrounds.

Tell us about your time at Leicester:

When I first started my course, I was not sure how to connect the course materials and the things I learn daily with my passion for AI and Robotics, as I had limited experience with robots. However, I joined DriverLeics team at CMS and the mentorship I received in my first year helped bridge that gap, deepening my understanding and fuelling my interest further.

Some of the modules I enjoyed included Software Architecture and Internet and Cloud Computing, as they gave me insights into designing scalable, distributed and digital systems. I used this knowledge for my 3rd and 4th year projects to efficiently train a large number of robotic dogs. 

Currently, I am part of DANiLab where we research robotics systems and focus on conference publications. I believe my experience differs from my peers as I chose to not engage much with societies and instead mainly concentrated my time on improving the topics I truly enjoy, specifically robotics, AI and systems.

What were the best thing/s about your course?

How did your course help you with your personal and professional development?

It provided me with a strong theoretical foundation in Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence, which has been essential in building my technical skills. It changed how I viewed concepts and encouraged me to automate and find solutions for many things I use in my daily life such as creating a study schedule website and developing a program that allows me to filter my files and delete unnecessary ones.

Additionally, the course included many group projects, which allowed me to learn how to collaborate effectively and handle common issues such as task
allocation and reallocation, time management and how to communicate ideas and solutions effectively.

What are your plans after you have graduated?

After graduation, I plan to purse a PhD in Embodied Intelligence. I was fortunate to be awarded an EPSRC studentship which will provide me with the resources and mentorship required to develop my research ideas and passion for intelligent robotic systems.

As part of the programme, I will also be collaborating with industry leaders allowing me to apply my academic research into real-world systems and gather invaluable insights and experience. This aligns with my interest in creating intelligent robotics systems that can adapt and interact with complex environments. By doing a PhD, I aim to contribute to the advancement of robotics that can learn and respond to the world around them. 

How did you apply the skills you learnt at Leicester into your current plans?

Although my course at Leicester didn't specifically cover robotics or the use of Multi-Model Large Language Models (MLLMs), it provided me with strong foundational skills and mentorship that helped build the mindset to succeed.

One of the most important skills I gained was project planning and management where I learned how to break complex problems, set realistic timelines and organise my workflow efficiently. This was helpful during my 3rd year and 4th year projects, both of which demanded planning and self-discipline. These will be essential during my PhD, as it will require long term independent research and consistent progress tracking.

What is your advice to current students?

My advice to current and future student is to explore, be curious and remember everything starts small. Before joining University, I enjoyed experimenting with electronics, computer hardware, software and systems. Although, I did not have a great purpose or a clear project in mind, I was driven by desire to learn how to use these tools and devices.

In my last two years of the course, I found that I had independently studied many topics, both before joining university or during my first two years. For instance I had to use electronics to understand how to build a minimal version of my undergraduate project. My familiarity with virtual machines and Linux systems allowed me to excel on the Internet and Cloud Computing module as I was able to apply what I had learned.

A degree in computer science from the University of Leicester will help you prepare yourself for a wide range of career opportunities, aside from offering you the skills and material to immerse yourself in an academic environment never experienced in undergraduate college. You will meet so many fascinating people, be they students or lecturers, who will have such a profound influence on your life and possibly even on your character.

At Leicester, I like the fact that there is the right blend of theoretical work as well as the opportunity to expand on practical knowledge. Maybe you haven’t decided exactly what you want to do yet. Don’t worry! Computer Science at Leicester offers a world of opportunities. You can use your MSc degree to work in the financial sector or software and perhaps prepare you for a PhD!

Name: Elizabeth
Course: BSc Computer Science
Graduation Year:  2024

What is your current or most recent job title? And what does your role entail?

I am in the final stages of an MSc in Data Analytics at a London Russell Group university. The summer I graduated from Leicester, I was interning as a Data Scientist at a US bulge bracket investment bank. The year before, so at the end of my second year of university, I interned as a DevOps Engineer at the London Stock Exchange, the UK’s primary stock exchange and a central institution in the UK financial markets.  

Tell us about your time at Leicester

I really enjoyed my time at Leicester. Coming to Leicester was the best decision I made for my career progression, considering I came from a humanities background, with my A-levels being Psychology, Sociology and Religious Studies. First year gave a good introduction into the field – being introduced into the popular programming languages, mathematical foundations etc.

What were the best things about your course?

The best thing about the course was the variety of topics you learnt about – during my degree, I learnt about cloud to project management, backend, frontend and data science. 

How did your course help you with your personal and professional development? 

I feel the course helped with developing a good technical domain knowledge. What I mean by this, is that although, I was more focused in having a career in data analytics, I still had knowledge about cloud, for example, from the cloud modules I took during my final year. Let’s say, I was in a working environment, and the team needed to consider using a cloud platform for a task, the different types of cloud platforms available (AWS, GCP etc) are not completely foreign to me, and that aids with confidence and how I can contribute to the work at hand.

What is your advice to current students?  

My advice to current students is to learn how to speak to people. When you start working in industry, you soon realise that coding is one part of the job. Being inter-personal will get you far in corporate. A lot of these skills are developed through getting work placements, internships, insight days etc. I would also encourage you to go to networking events, and speak to senior developers, be curious, ask about their journey – you can learn a lot through a 10–15-minute conversation. 

The environment will enable you to achieve the perfect balance in relation to your academic and social life. There are many events organised by the University which are designed to make your time at Leicester memorable!

The events calendar commences from the day one and starts with the ISWP (International Student Welcome Programme) which helps international students to settle in and become acquainted with British culture and customs. Also, I have not once had reason to complain about the facilities and access to academic resources. Additionally, I have received constant motivation from lecturers and tutors.

Finally, the university makes a great effort to help you to establish links with industry, to enable you to start your career as soon as you complete your education. But ultimately, it all depends on you, so just grab the opportunity and make the most out of it.

I came to Leicester from from Kerala, India. I was apprehensive at first, not knowing if the British educational system would suit me or not. But I soon realised that I need not have had fears. I have come to love the life and atmosphere of the University of Leicester. It is such a lovely place to be in and the people are really friendly too!

Make sure you make the most of the time at the University of Leicester. Get involved in everything you possibly can, make a bunch of friends, have fun and oh, don’t forget to study too. Ultimately, it will be one of the most memorable times of your life.

When I arrived on campus I felt nervous, apprehensive, and excited. We were thrown into Software Oriented Architecture class right off the bat, and all I could think was, "Wow, I’m in over my head". When I joined my fellow admits for pizza and a night out with current students, I began to feel that I 'fitted in' at the University. It was during my first Personal Tutor meeting about the future in this course that something clicked inside me: the University of Leicester was the place for me!

A huge number of opportunities and experiences await you here; people can be found from diverse cultural backgrounds, all chasing their varied goals. But you will always find a Professor or a colleague who has time for your queries and respects your opinions. There are lot of extra-curricular activities like volunteering, sports, the students' magazine and a lot of events that brings the entire university to socialise together as one. Also the International Buddy Programme implemented is amazing! International students have the opportunity to have a buddy who helps them to get adjusted, and helps with all their needs and they offer advice regarding the do’s and don’ts at the university. Finally, your time spent at Leicester is bound to be memorable, given the wide array of things that Leicester has to offer. You may be from any part of the world but the University of Leicester strives to be your second home.