Luca Passoni MSc Sustainable Energy Technologies, 2012
Senior Associate, PwC Italy
The collaborative environment was one of the things I enjoyed most about Southampton, especially when I was working on my research project. This inspired me to keep working on the topic and embark on my career.
Can you provide a brief summary of your time at Southampton?
My time at Southampton enriched both my personal and my professional life. I shared great times with those who then became great friends!
What was the highlight of your time as a Southampton student?
As a foreign student, it was interesting to experience a different way of learning. During the MSc, you are asked to search for study resources independently. This is what gave me an edge and helped me both during my PhD and now in my professional career.
What did you enjoy most about your course?
The collaborative environment was one of the things I enjoyed most about Southampton, especially when I was working on my research project. This inspired me to keep working on the topic and embark on my career.
What were your supervisors like? Did you find them supportive?
My supervisors were definitely supportive. Besides the tremendous assistance offered during the course that someone might view as their normal duty, I have to say that, especially towards the end of the course, they actually helped me a lot to get started with the next step in my career (my PhD back in Italy) by providing precious advice and support.
What is your current role?
As a senior associate of a large consultancy firm, I work to scout out innovative new solutions for the clients of my company’s network and to integrate these solutions with their businesses. To do, so I interact with all kinds of partners, from start-ups to research institutes. It is here that my technical background becomes key.
In what ways does the course you took at Southampton help you within your career?
It helped me to improve the way I research. Secondly, my technical knowledge allows me to interact with a very wide variety of industry representatives.
What has been your greatest career achievement so far?
Well...besides the PhD in one of the most important research institutes in Italy, I think that my greatest achievement is the fact that, since I started my bachelor’s, I have been able to put myself in the situation where it was always up to me to decide what to do. I consider myself very lucky for this!