Alasdair Gerrard MEng Aeronautics and Astronautics, fourth year
Engineering Foundation Year, 2014
I had been interested in doing something maths related for quite a while, but I realised that engineering courses require an A-level in Physics. I chose to take the Foundation Year, as it would set me up perfectly for the first year of my degree. I would have all the qualifications necessary and would have already experienced university life.
Tell us about your time at Southampton?
I started university as a foundation year student, coming straight from school like most other students. I quickly became accustomed to university life; meeting new people and experiencing new things. I spent the first part of my first year as a typical student, going out often and eating food that would not be typically described as ‘healthy’, however as time passed, I decided that this was probably not the greatest lifestyle to adopt and thus started working hard - going out less often and doing all the work set for tutorials. I joined the university cricket team keeping up training weekly which was very enjoyable and saw me meet many new people, including 3 of which I now live with. I managed to get through the foundation year comfortably by making sense of difficult topics with friends in the library and the ‘base room’. At the end of the year I managed to get a job in the students union in the marketing department, so this allowed me to earn some money before I left for the year and carried on throughout my first year.
After this, I started the first year of the aeronautics and astronautics course. The first few weeks felt very comfortable as I had learned a lot of the content in the foundation year, but as time went on, the content got more difficult so I had to work harder and become more accustomed to setting myself working schedules. I applied to become one of the course representatives and got the position, so throughout the year I attended meetings with staff members feeding back on how the course was being run, helping to improve the student experience for first years. During this year I also joined another society called Enactus and helped compete in a national competition which we won! I managed to pass the year balancing time and work and look forward to the rest of my degree.
Why did you choose to come here?
I chose Southampton because I knew I wanted to go to a university renowned for engineering, however due to my circumstances I was limited in my choices. I initially shortlisted a lot of universities that included the option of a foundation year and proceeded to attend some of the open days. Initially I considered Southampton as a backup option, living in Yorkshire it was very far away, but I decided that I might as well visit the open day just in case. The first open day I attended I knew this would be my first choice in my UCAS application, the university just felt right. I attended a second open day to ensure that this was the university for me; after all, I would be spending a considerable amount of time here. The second open day confirmed this for me and I put it as my first choice.
Why did you decide to take a Foundation Year?
Before I undertook my A-levels, I thought that I wanted to become a neuroscientist or psychologist so I based my A-level choices around that career path. About halfway through my first year I decided that biology was ridiculously boring and although I enjoyed psychology, it wasn’t what I wanted to do. After visiting a university fair at Leeds Becket university, I picked up some prospectuses and looked at other courses and looked at the engineering courses, I had been interested in doing something maths related for quite a while, but realised that all engineering courses requires an A-level in physics, so I had no choice but to either choose a foundation year or go to college. I decided on taking the foundation year as it would set me up perfectly for the first year of my degree as I would have all the qualifications necessary and would have already experienced university life.
What did you enjoy most about the year?
The thing I enjoyed most about the foundation year was the independence I gained living as a student, it was a great experience to be on a course where people actually wanted to learn as opposed to turning up to school where only 50% did. I have met some great people and made some great friends through both my course and extra-curricular activities such as cricket and Enactus.
Would you recommend the Foundation Year?
I would recommend the foundation year whole-heartedly to anyone thinking of undertaking an engineering or similar degree, without the traditional entry qualifications. It is a very useful pathway if you do not have the required level of maths and physics, however do not be fooled, it is very hard work; so only take it if you have the correct work ethic and dedicate yourself to it 110%.
What were your lecturers and tutors like?
My lecturers and tutors were all very intelligent, they teach subjects that they have experience in and things are explained clearly with justifications given as to why they have done/said certain things that come up in lectures. Further to this, they were all very supportive throughout the year. Many support classes run throughout the year so if after the lecture there is still something that you don’t understand, then you can attend these sessions to ask as many questions as you like until you fully understand it. Although I never personally attended any of these sessions, a few of my course-mates have told me that they found them very useful.
What advice would you give to other Foundation Year students?
One piece of advice I would give is to make the most of your year. You will never get the chance to live your first year of university again. This said, it is also of paramount importance that you revise early on. Time at university clearly follows the rules of another dimension, one in which days seem to last around 17 minutes; all of a sudden it’s January and you’ve got your first exams coming up! It’s not the easiest job in the world balancing your time around an undoubtedly hectic social life, but you will be thankful when you receive your exam results back and feeling smug when you receive 20 marks higher than your friend who did not structure their time effectively and ended up in the pub the night before an exam!
What do you plan to do when you’ve finished University?
My current career goal is to become involved in a space related company, potentially the ESA or Astrium, however I have time to decide before I pick the pathway that I will continue on for the rest of my degree course. I would like to remain open minded at this point in time and decide what modules I find most interesting and engaging.