Tag Archives: Tshepo

Newcastle University – a diverse student experience…

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Tshepo Tshambane, a MSc in Geotechical Engineering student, writes about her experience so far as a postgraduate student and what its like living in the city of Newcastle

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From starting in a big city (Sheffield) to relocating to a small town in the corner of the country (Penryn), living in Newcastle has been the ‘pièce de résistance’ of my time in the UK; from the people I’ve met to the things I have done-and all within the few months that I’ve been here so far. I can only describe it as one of kind.

To begin with I have never been in an institution that values the input and varying opinions of its students; there are multiple student held positions across the board such as course reps who sit on Staff Student Committees as well as Board of Studies meetings which go towards influencing how the courses are run and the general betterment of the student body and go so far as having school reps sitting on Graduate School Committees-so there is never a shortage of student representation within Newcastle University.

The same sentiment is carried through to the smallest corners of the university, the cultural representation in my course cohort alone is something special. I have since met so many people who originate from all parts of the world; Spain, India, Jamaica… including those born and raised in Northumberland county. The mixture of students and the ongoing journey to get to know them all has been an experience on its own and from a fellow international student, the spirit of inclusion and comradery has never left since the first group activity we had of exploring this new city with a group of people I had never met before during our intro week. The continued effort from each postgraduate student to be helpful and approachable has been more than what I expected which lets me enjoy group activities more-yes even GROUPWORK isn’t so bad… and of course the group’s social outings aren’t so bad either as a reward to ourselves after each hard worked submission!

Who can mention Newcastle without touching on the social life of the city?? Granted, being a postgraduate has not awarded me with as much leisure time as my undergraduate years but there is still a plethora of happenings to take advantage of around any schedule. For the social night bugs, there are a string of clubs and pubs that welcome the student status with discounted entries and drinks on almost every night, great places to eat and at least four cinemas around for the movie buffs like me! Daytime activities aren’t on the shortlist either, there is plenty to do and see in Newcastle; I can proudly boast that I have walked under or across all six bridges that cross the Tyne including the famous Millennium bridge! I am yet to stand at the feet of the Angel of North but that and much more can be achieved through the university’s “Give-It-A-Go” initiative!

Ranked amongst the top 10 universities on the Time’s Higher Education Student survey, studying here at Newcastle University is building to be a bittersweet experience between wishing I could have started my educational journey here from undergraduate and being grateful that Newcastle University is where I get to complete it all! 🙂

Why I chose to study MSc Geotechnical Engineering

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Tshepo Tshambane, a postgraduate student writes about her passion for Geotechnical Engineering and what she hopes to gain from her postgraduate degree in the subject

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I was born in Botswana, a country well known for its mines and rare earth commodities. So from living an almost nomadic life between all the mining towns in the country (due to my mother’s work within the various mines) this set the course for what I thought would be my life plan. I studied Mining Engineering as an undergraduate to be a mining engineer and go work in a mine-but it was then that I was introduced to Geotechnical Engineering. I fell in love! Geotechnical Engineering was the technical side that I felt that I had been missing. Mining was more about people and resource management, more theory than a “hands on approach”. I began researching the subject as a career and every coursework I undertook, I made sure to make it geotechnically aligned. I learnt that by studying Geotechnical Engineering at a higher level it could open doors that I had never cast my mind upon due to its niche nature.

It has only been a few months in and I am still astounded by the options and directions that my career path can take. At the end of my postgraduate degree I could go immediately into consultancy-which is an umbrella word in its own right as no one company seems to do the same thing! I could go back and work in those mines I grew up around but in a more specialised capacity; mining engineers are a dime a dozen but geotechnical engineers are a worth their weight in gold! At the end of the day I have a secret hope to be a lecturer… so I’m playing around with the idea of going into a PhD after this degree. To say that studying in Newcastle has broadened my horizons would be an understatement. I have never been more surrounded by information or help and guidance to pursue any future that I prefer. I chose Newcastle University only knowing how great their module choices were but it has been more than that since being here; I see the growth of my soft skills as much as my technical skills, I have met members and employees of companies and organisations that I now aspire to be a part of… My career path was never set in stone but it is here that I believe that I began the first steps.

Research elements of my degree – MSc Geotechnical Engineering

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Tshepo Tshambane, a postgraduate student studying an MSc in Geotechnical Engineering, writes about the research aspects of her degree and how it has benefited her learning experience at Newcastle University.

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In my postgraduate degree, the research aspect comes in the form of a dissertation. We are provided with over 60 open ended topics and room to add our own if we so wish. The research topics are varied in nature some involve immense field work while some are laboratory based. These topics are real world issues that in some shape or form have not been fully addressed yet and thus gives us the students, an opportunity to complete the puzzle with our own understanding, both methodically and creatively. Some of the topics given are directly from industry where a company is having a time sensitive issue such as the progressive decrease in usage of Pulverised Fuel Ash (PFA) for mine grouting, as an example, and they need to find an alternative product. The students work hand in hand with these companies, giving them the chance to come up with ground breaking solutions as well as an opportunity of work under industry conditions.

Though the research is primarily our work to demonstrate our own initiatives and the direction in which we would want the world to move to, we are supported by research active academic staff who have a strong interest in these fields. With most, the topic they have proposed stems from work they have done previously and are possibly in need of a fresh mind with a new perspective to forward the work. They guide us and offer advice from their years of knowledge and experience while giving us free reign of the project.

The way our dissertations are set up is truly enriching not only academically but also with obtaining soft skills as we learn how to work on our own initiatives and practice time management as we work with deadlines and more so our research runs alongside our normal academic schedules. We learn effective communication skills from presenting ideas we have in our heads to an audience who may or may not know what the subject entails. Our employability skills are also improved in terms of presentation and proposal writing, allowing us to gain specialist knowledge and the ability to decide what is relevant or not. I have truly enjoying this process, the research here is both challenging and eye opening, it prepares us well for life after graduation; both in industry and when pursuing a PhD.

Celebrating International Women in Engineering Day 2017

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Tshepo Tshambane, a postgraduate student studying an MSc in Geotechnical Engineering, writes about what its like being a female engineer in a male dominated field and gives advice to young women interested in pursuing a career in STEM.

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I think as a female engineer in a male dominated field I have always felt or anticipated that I would feel intimidated at times but I have never let that stop me from studying/working in a field that I have grown to love. With women like Bridgette Radebe – the first black South African deep level, hard rock mining entrepreneur, Claire Carr and Kate Hall who are listed under ’35 under 35’ both from the civil engineering sector or Dervilla Mitchell who lead one of the largest construction projects in Europe once upon a time, Heathrow’s Terminal 5- women who are achieving what was once considered unimaginable there truly is never a shortage of female inspiration and definitely plenty of room for more in engineering and its related fields.

Having studied Mining Engineering at undergraduate level and now Geotechnical Engineering at Master’s level I can say that there has been a positive change to the ratio of female students to our male counterparts in the lecture room; 1 in 10 and 1 to 5 respectively-not by a skyrocketing change but a change nonetheless. A study in the US once indicated that there was approximately only 11% of women studying geotechnical engineering compared to 15-17% in structural engineering for example. I would like to say that I am not disheartened by these statistics, to me they say “Hey, at least WE ARE THERE!”. Of course more can be done to increase these figures, not only by us women but by men too! We can encourage young girls to think bigger and not be afraid of what they can accomplish, especially in areas that have never been touched by a female hand.

During my time I have come across numerous organisations that encourage women to be a part of the science and engineering world. Through Newcastle University I was able to become a member of Women in Science and Engineering (WISE). WISE does what is says on the tin; it is a “campaign that promotes women in science, technology and engineering” through the sharing of events, training courses and advertising of STEM roles … a true platform that boosts women interaction and inspiration in the world of engineering. Newcastle University has and continues to receive prestigious Athena SWAN awards. The University’s School of Civil Engineering (CEG) received a Bronze Award status for their efforts in creating one of the largest diverse academic units in the United Kingdom. Studying under such a dedicated body has inspired me to not be discouraged at being one of two or three female classmates but to fortify my own efforts to be successful and inspire others.