Josh Whitworth

The honest answer is that I always knew I wanted to go into STEM, and Chemical Engineering seemed a good career pathway to take – which has turned out true. However, I definitely believe that the wide-ranging career options presented by “Chem Eng” such as pharmaceuticals, chemicals, renewable energy, water treatment and fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG), can really empower you to contribute to making positive changes.

I really enjoyed the sense of community that was present on the course in the year group I was a part of. It even extended across years – you could sit in the S building foyer or computer labs and easily have a conversation or ask a question of someone.

I attended during 2013-2018, and the majority of the facilities were excellent – Wolfson School had good quality facilities, and the building of the 24-hour S Building computer labs definitely saved me in my final two years also. Since then, facilities like the STEMLab building and S Building renovation can only improve what was already good to begin with. The teaching quality was also up there. Lecturers were often approachable and reachable via email or office hours were required. They were often more than willing to lend a hand with particular problems or concepts.

For me, the final year design project was my favourite part of the course. It really condensed the five years of learning and experience I had gathered myself, alongside that of the team I was a part of, into one huge document of process descriptions, calculations and more process flow diagrams and piping and instrumentation diagrams (P&IDs) that I want to recollect. It was a real slog – many long hours spent in meeting rooms and computer labs, but the final product was something I was really proud of, that represented the five years I had spent studying at º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ.

Since graduating from º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ summer 2018, I accepted a job offer to join the National Nuclear Laboratory’s (NNL) graduate scheme, which I am about to complete with an offer to join the chemical and process modelling team as a full-time position. I have also become an active Prospect Union representative, supporting equality and worker’s rights in the workplace.

It’s often said that you use only around 5-10% of the technical knowledge you gain during your degree when you graduate and find a job. However, I definitely have used close to 100% of the skills and experience I gained over my five years at º¬Ðß²ÝÊÓƵ – such as the often quoted like teamwork and communication.

I definitely developed key skills such as teamwork through the multiple group and paired projects I did over the course of my degree. Naturally, that also improves communication, leadership, problem-solving and ability to work under constraints such as time and pressure. For example, 6 months seems a long time to complete the final year project – but try and do too much and you can ask too much of yourself! Further, there are definitely skills that are developed by putting the effort in to keep the team working well together.