Student profiles

Read our student profiles to find out what it’s really like to be a Aerospace Engineering student at Brunel.

During the first year of my studies, I had been actively looking for a summer placement and had registered my interest with Brunel’s Professional Development Centre (PDC). I had no previous technical experience but the PDC helped me immensely to bring out the best I could on my CV. With their support and a stroke of luck, I obtained a placement at Nikon Metrology.

Nikon Metrology deals with manufacturing of industry based X-ray and Computed Tomography (CT) Inspection systems, from Research and Development through to mainline production. Our technology provides an ‘insight into the inside’ and is used in wide areas of research, inspection of complex industrial parts, non-destructive testing and metrology. Our customers range from research institutes and universities to electronics, general machinery, automotive and aerospace defence. I worked on improving and organising the Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) system of the company and whilst shadowing a Senior Engineer I learnt about X-ray technology, gained hands on experience in building X-ray guns, devised experiments and wrote reports, carried out system maintenance work and by the end of summer I had also learnt to process radiographs manually.

I came back to Nikon Metrology to complete a year-long work placement in my third year. As a Junior R&D Engineer I devised numerous experiments to improve quality and reliability and wrote subsequent test reports and test specifications, learnt thorough operation of the company machines, learnt to process and manage the costing side of an engineering product development, dealt with preparing paperwork to comply with regulatory requirements, designed cost-effective solutions for sub-assemblies and test parts using 3-D CAD, dealt with day to day ERP activities, learnt to carry out CT scans and do relevant CT analysis. With strong support from my supervisor and colleagues, I grew confident with my work and I am gradually learning to handle projects and tasks independently.

The placement has provided me with lots of technical skills, has introduced me to high intellectuals in my engineering domain, helped build a strong and reliable network and has given over a year’s worth of valuable experience. It has also helped me develop some ‘soft-skills’ like problem-solving and good communication skills, building up self-esteem and confidence, and an ability to work with others.

Raj, Aerospace Engineering BEng

I chose to study at Brunel because I thought that this was the most suitable university for me. I was looking for a well-accredited and reputable degree with a placement, top class campus facilities and a nearby town Centre. Brunel had all of these things to offer as a package. I also liked that central London is just a 40-minute tube ride away, and Heathrow airport is just 15 minutes away by car.

The University has strong links with major oil companies, vehicle manufacturers and other significant industrial firms in the UK, which could provide valuable work experience and thus add value to my degree.

The campus facilities are brilliant because there is everything you need, including: 5 or 6 places to eat, a systematic library, a bank, a pharmacy, a local supermarket and full-fledged fitness and sport facilities. In addition, Uxbridge town Centre is great, as it has fantastic transport links to and from the university.

I like studying at Brunel because my course is very well structured and has a mixture of teaching methods that include not only lectures and seminars, but drawing sessions, workshops and lab work. Also, study resources are readily available to students - there are plenty of computers all around the campus, and Wi-Fi access for everyone. The library is open 24 hours and is full of books, PCs, and journal titles (electronic and hard copies) that have been useful for my assignments and projects.

The university's accommodation and its services are very convenient and adequate. The halls are well maintained and are very secure. I was very satisfied with my room on the first day as everything was clean and intact.

My advice to new students would be to first settle in and get used to being independent while adapting to university lifestyle, which can be a challenging leap, especially for international undergraduates like myself. Also it is important that you try and get to know people around you and get involved with clubs, events or societies from the beginning. In addition, try and maintain a balance between academics and the rest of your life (social, health, household tasks, etc.). Create rough plans for what needs to be done in a week and prioritize tasks in terms of high or low importance and how urgently it needs to be done.

I have chosen to do a placement year, in order to make myself more employable once I finish my degree. Upon, graduation I wish to work for at least 12 months and make an approach towards my Master's degree.