Defne

I’m in my third year of studying Chemical Engineering. I’m originally from Turkey but always knew I wanted to study in the UK. My father came to London for his Master’s, and he’d always wanted one of his kids to study in London too.

I came to Imperial’s Summer School and at that time I knew I wanted to be an engineer, but I wasn’t sure what kind. During the Summer School I could join workshops for the different departments in engineering; we did materials, mechanical, chemical and aerospace. It was a great opportunity to experience the different engineering disciplines and helped me decide to apply to study Chemical Engineering.

Choosing Chemical Engineering

To produce anything, we need a chemical process. Be it clothes or glasses – everything comes out of a chemical process. As a chemical engineer, I look at the processes to see if we can make it better or more efficient, or how to make it more accessible to provide the market demand. For the last 10 or 20 years, chemical engineers also work to see how to make the processes more environmentally friendly, whether that’s finding new energy sources or just making it more sustainable.

The decision to study Chemical Engineering came quite naturally. At my high school we were studying sustainability and the environment, which was something I was really interested in.

I also really enjoyed chemistry, and my teacher was the head of the society for sustainability. There was a period of time when I wanted to do food science, but with chemical engineering, you can actually work on things like food production – it’s got so many applications.

When looking at universities, I really liked the opportunities Imperial could give me, especially in Chemical Engineering. The labs are great and we have a Carbon Capture Pilot Plant which is amazing – it is enormous. It’s over four floors and we can work in it, learn how to operate and how to understand it.

Adapting to university study

The course has given me more understanding of how I can be involved in industry and experimental work, not just the theoretical view.

That’s something I really like about Imperial: you’re given a good amount of practical work so we can understand how to implement the knowledge we’re learning in real-life situations. It’s made me realise I really enjoy the practical side of things, like designing a process or optimising it.

Moving to London

The transition to university and moving to the UK was tough at the beginning as it was my first time living alone. I learned a lot about looking after myself and all the administrative things that come with moving abroad. My flatmates in first year were all international students as well, so we were all in the same situation and could help each other.

I find London such a calm and organised place to live compared to Istanbul – but I know a lot of people disagree with me on that! Now I’ve been here a few years I really like that I have my own life here. It’s a really flat city so I’d suggest walking rather than taking the tube or the bus. It helps you clear your head and saves you money!

English isn’t my first language, but even if I sometimes struggle with it no one cares. If you’re an international student I’d really recommend seeing if there’s a society for your country – I joined the Turkish society in my first year and it helped a lot. Finding people who speak your main language and have shared experiences is really nice, even just having people to eat Turkish food with!

Defne in front of Tower Bridge in London

The Careers Service

I had an appointment with the Careers Service which I found really helpful. They gave me feedback on my CV and I had another appointment where I spoke to someone about my future career options. I know I like chemical engineering, but I didn’t know what it was that I needed to do next and what my options could be. They helped me to think about the different options and next steps.

Undergraduate Research Opportunities Programme (UROP)

I did a UROP in my second-year summer. My route to a UROP was a bit different to others because my supervisor was also my personal tutor. We were talking in a one-to-one session and I explained the sort of research I wanted to be doing, and he said that he was actually working on something similar and was looking for someone to help him. I read up on his research and knew I wanted to help, so we confirmed I would help him out as part of the undergraduate research programme. UROP was very interesting and I enjoyed it a lot, it gave me lots of experience in how things are done in the real world.

The Chemical Engineering society

I’m the secretary of the Chemical Engineering Society and the year before I was the communications officer. Societies are a great way to socialise and make friends with people who have a common interest as you. As committee members, we organise lots of events for members to meet and to welcome first years. This is especially exciting as we’re back to in-person meetings!