Carolyn's story
'I'd wanted to do a postgraduate degree right from the start because I knew it would make me stand out from other people. I thought if I wanted a career in engineering, I was going to need it...I also felt I could still get a lot more out of education.
'I chose to stay at Sheffield Hallam mainly because of the course. I really enjoyed my undergraduate course and got a lot out of it so I wanted to continue my relationship with them. The staff were all very approachable, and the University always gave off a very friendly vibe. 'The relationship you have with your lecturers as a postgraduate student is different. You get more respect and they treat you more like peers.
'Everyone's a lot more focussed at postgraduate, and it's a lot more competitive - which is definitely a good thing. You feed off the competitiveness, but everyone's still willing to help because people do struggle in different areas. This improves the quality of the work and helps you achieve better results.
'Postgraduate study is a large step up in terms of independence. There's an expectation to do much more independent reading. But this was something I expected and I've learned to adapt. For me the content is also much harder, but I'm enjoying learning completely new things.
'I'm really enjoying the amount of practical work because it will translate more to the working world. Knowing where this course can take me in the future is very exciting and it gives me a lot of confidence for when I finish. The other positive thing about the course is the number of links to industry and the fact we can work with these companies for our projects and build up relationships for the future.'
Carolyn Webb, MSc in Sports Engineering
