Tag: Societies

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Living on the tails: studying as a mature student…

Photograph of Azfarul… by Azfarul / from London, UK / MSc Statistics with Data Science / PG (2020-21)

“Are you sure you want to do this?”

In addition to “Sorry, I was on mute!”, this is what I heard most throughout 2020. After a decade of working, leaving behind a fascinating job during global uncertainty to pursue a Masters might have seemed like foolishness. Fast forward more than a year and – after what felt like drowning in hundreds of hours of coursework, endlessly playing and re-playing recorded lectures, dealing with the eerie silence of virtually-conducted examinations, and three intense months of industrially-liaised project work – I still find it difficult to believe how this time flew as it did.

Continue reading “Living on the tails: studying as a mature student…”

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20 Ways to be a Sustainable Student at Edinburgh Uni…

Photograph of Anna… by Anna / from Dundee / BSc Mathematics / 4th Year (UG)

With a new semester comes the opportunity to create sustainable habits and mindsets. I’ll be the first to admit that I’m not perfect at this, but by slowly making small changes, I’ve managed to transform some of my choices into less wasteful ones. I thought I’d share some of these with you in case you’d like some ideas of how to live more sustainably!

Continue reading “20 Ways to be a Sustainable Student at Edinburgh Uni…”

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If I Could Talk to my First Year Self…

… by Rory / from Peebles / MMath Mathematics / 5th Year (UG)

I am about to enter my 5th and final year of an MMath degree, with the start of the semester only a couple of weeks away. I thought it might be interesting to cast my mind back to this time four years ago and examine how my approach and preparations for the semester have changed over the years. Hopefully this will be a useful reference for those just starting out and on a personal level I am curious to see what I’ve done differently and why. Continue reading “If I Could Talk to my First Year Self…”

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Student Groups, Clubs and Societies…

… by Donald / from Gweru, Zimbabwe / MA Economics and Mathematics / 2nd Year (UG)

Growing up, I witnessed first-hand the adverse effects of the hyperinflation crises in Zimbabwe, and this sparked my desire to learn how to create lucrative projects that are beneficial to the global community. Therefore, when I came to the University of Edinburgh through the Mastercard Foundation scholarship, I chose to do Mathematics and Economics so as to gain insight into the intricate dynamics underlying major economies worldwide. Continue reading “Student Groups, Clubs and Societies…”

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University Ski Trip…

… by Arran / from Glasgow / BSc Mathematics / 3rd Year (UG)

Obviously we can’t travel at the moment due to Covid-19, which has made me think back on some of my recent trips. Under normal circumstances, Edinburgh University has lots of opportunities to get involved with things outside of just studying your course. I am going to tell you about one of many fantastic opportunities that you can get involved with.

Continue reading “University Ski Trip…”

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Reflecting on my MSc…

Picture of Belen on the upper level of Victoria Street, with the road and row of coloured shop fronts below… by Belen / from Ecuador / MSc Operational Research with Data Science / PG (2019-20)

Coming from a background of Logistics and Transportation engineering and work experience in the transportation industry, I was looking for a MSc programme that could be tailored to my interests in optimization and data analytics. I found the MSc in Operational Research with Data Science at the University of Edinburgh, which was the perfect option for me since it offers a diverse pool of courses that balances perfectly both theory and application.

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Why I chose to study Maths at The University of Edinburgh…

A photograph of Fionnuala… by Fionnuala / from London / BSc Mathematics / 1st Year (UG)

Choosing which university to apply to, firm or insure on UCAS can be a very daunting experience. I can remember submitting my application, which I had spent ages preparing, to then realise there would be harder decisions to make once I had received answers from my five options.

Choosing a university is a very personal decision. What one of your best friends at school might love when choosing somewhere just might not do it for you. There may be something small, but which will be really important for you during your time there so my main piece of advice is to make sure you don’t base your decision off somebody else’s. The two biggest factors which affected my decision were; the degree programme itself and the city which I would be living in.

Continue reading “Why I chose to study Maths at The University of Edinburgh…”

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Ten Things I Learnt from my MSc…

… by Kevin / from Hong Kong / MSc Computational Applied Mathematics / PG (2018-19)

My name is Kevin, I had completed an undergraduate degree in maths at Warwick before pursuing a Masters in Computational Applied Mathematics at Edinburgh (2018-19). Now I’m doing a PhD in Medical Informatics at the Usher Institute in Edinburgh.

Here are the 10 things I learnt during my MSc programme. Continue reading “Ten Things I Learnt from my MSc…”

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A Great City for Students…

… by Eunwoo / from Yongin, South Korea / BSc Mathematics / 1st Year (UG)

Hello everyone! I am a first-year maths student from Korea. I remember reading the blog posts before coming to university and becoming both excited and nervous about what lies ahead. Now it’s my turn to provide a glimpse to what it is like to be a maths student here.

To be honest, I wasn’t a fan of Edinburgh as a city at first. I grew up in Newcastle up to primary school and so would visit Edinburgh quite often since it’s near. But, at least in my memory, the city was so grey and the weather was so wet. However, now I’ve realised there are so many lively and energetic aspects of Edinburgh that adds a lot to your student life.

Continue reading “A Great City for Students…”

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MathSoc: How to Get Involved…

… by Loana / from Hermannsburg, Germany / BSc Mathematics / 3rd Year (UG)

Hello everybody, today I’d like to talk about MathSoc and what it has to offer.

Who would’ve thought that Maths people can be sporty! As of this year, MathSoc has seven teams registered within the intramural leagues (meaning that the league is organised by the university): two men’s football, one women’s football, one women’s netball, one mixed hockey and two mixed basketball teams. The intramural option is a less competitive way to play sport compared to the main university clubs, and there’s no experience needed. I’m part of the women’s football team and am the only one who’s ever played competitive games when I was still in school. But this is not a must have, as we are the team with the greatest turn out every week. Continue reading “MathSoc: How to Get Involved…”

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Balancing Student Life and Studies…

… by Jaden / from CA, United States / BSc Mathematics / 1st Year (UG)

You just got back from football practice. Maybe you’ve been playing for a year or almost your entire life. Nonetheless, you love it and that’s what’s important. Regardless of what passions you have, or if you want to discover new ones, it’s natural to have worries about balancing life with studying. In fact, it’s natural to have a bit (or a lot) of anxiety about University in general! However, despite the anxiety you may have, it’s important to know that there’s time for both in University if you play your cards right. Continue reading “Balancing Student Life and Studies…”

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Getting into Banking with a Maths Degree…

… by Rebecca / from Lincoln / BSc Mathematics [2nd Year Entry] / 2nd Year (UG)

As one of the highest-earning sectors for graduates, it’s no surprise that banking is a popular career choice. By ‘banking’, I mean investment banks (e.g. JPMorgan), asset managers (e.g. BlackRock) and more general banks (e.g. HSBC) etc. It can seem like a daunting industry that would be better suited to economics students, but banks hire maths graduates and are trying to become more diverse in every way, so it is a career you can have if you want it.

Since it is so competitive, to get a career in banking most people start preparing early on in their degree. After being at university for almost a year now, I’m starting to understand the timeline, so I have put together a guide of key things to do every year of your degree to help you get into banking:

Continue reading “Getting into Banking with a Maths Degree…”

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Edinburgh Global Undergraduate Mathematics Scholarship: A Student’s Take…

… by Emma / from NJ, USA / BSc Mathematics / 1st Year (UG)

Each year, the School of Mathematics gives international applicants the opportunity to apply for the Edinburgh Global Undergraduate Maths Scholarship. As a part of the application, applicants are encouraged to discuss why they are essentially seeking the scholarship and how they think it will help them throughout their University career. Continue reading “Edinburgh Global Undergraduate Mathematics Scholarship: A Student’s Take…”

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Finding Your Friends at University…

… by Susanne / from Amsterdam / BSc Computer Science and Mathematics / 3rd Year (UG)

Let me first introduce myself; my name is Susanne and I am currently a third-year Computer Science and Maths student at the University. I was born in Germany but have spent all of my youth in Amsterdam, so no, I unfortunately do not speak German. Growing up I never saw myself leaving the comfort of that rainy cold country until I started to look into the options for universities. The thought of not only moving out of my parent’s house but also moving to a completely new country where I knew no one frightened me but also excited me, as it gave me the opportunity to study at such a wonderful university in such a vibrant and cultured city. Continue reading “Finding Your Friends at University…”

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Get Involved…

… by Nick / from Johannesburg, South Africa / BSc Computer Science and Mathematics / 3rd Year (UG)

We are all told that our time at university will be full of opportunities; the things you can study, the people you could meet and the amount of time you will have on your hands. The real challenge is taking advantage of these opportunities to make sure that your university experience is as good as it can be.
Continue reading “Get Involved…”

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A Day in the Life…

… by Tally / from Scarborough / MMath Mathematics [2nd Year Entry] / 2nd Year (UG)

Hi! My name is Tally and I am a second year maths student here at the university. One thing I was unsure about when coming to university was if I’d be able to juggle my studies and my free time. Turns out, it wasn’t as hard as I thought. To demonstrate that I thought I’d outline what a day in my life could look like to give an example of what a student actually does. Continue reading “A Day in the Life…”

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An International Perspective on University Life…

… by Tanya / from Bangalore, India / MA Economics and Mathematics / 2nd Year (UG)

Being an international student can be a daunting experience. While most European or British students know what they’re getting into before coming to university, international students do not have this privilege.  As an Indian student, I couldn’t visit the University because it just wasn’t financially feasible. All my perception of the University- the city, the teaching, the buildings and everything was built on what I saw on Google, University ranking pages and most importantly, the Student Room. Despite having an image built into my mind, I was scared to walk into university. Somehow, along with the excitement, the idea of moving to foreign land with a culture extremely different from mine and being all alone was extremely scary. What if I hated the city or the university even worse, the course? What if everyone was unfriendly? At school, I had known everyone for the last nine years and now I wasn’t just moving to an unknown city but an unknown country. But as it is for international students, we have to blindly walk into it. And I did as well.

Continue reading “An International Perspective on University Life…”

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Is 2nd Year Entry for me?…

… by Freddie / from York / BSc Mathematics and Physics [2nd Year Entry] / 3rd Year (UG)

You’ve done the work, got the grades, and eventually settled on a university choice. Well done you for choosing Edinburgh! (You did, right?).

Then, if you’re like me, you’ll only later notice the option to enter through the second year of the course – wait, that’s a thing?
Yes, it’s a thing! And I’ll let you in on my experience of it. Continue reading “Is 2nd Year Entry for me?…”