Undergraduate student profiles

We asked some of our students and graduates to share their experiences of studying physics and astronomy at the University of Sheffield, and to tell us what they've ended up doing with their degree.

Su Yuan Wu

Both my academic and personal tutors have been extremely helpful

Su Yuan Wu BSc Physics and Astrophysics

Su came from Singapore to study physics in Sheffield, and has taken the chance to develop her science communication skills by running astronomy-based activities in local schools.

Ed Williamson

My degree gave me excellent communication and research skills to exceed in this role

Ed Williamson MPhys Physics with Medical Physics

After completing his physics degree, Ed joined staff on a trip to China, and soon started working as an engineer for Rolls-Royce while he completes his Engineering Doctorate.

Thomas Nuttall

As a data scientist, the programming courses were particularly useful for me

Thomas Nuttall Physics BSc

In his role at Channel 4, Thomas uses the software development and computational statistics skills he learned during his physics degree to improve the broadcaster's digital services.

Emily Rickman

Studying in Australia in third year gave me the confidence to look at PhDs abroad

Emily Rickman MPhys Physics and Astrophysics with Study Abroad

Emily spent the third year of her degree studying in Australia, and is now completing her PhD in Switzerland.

Richard Mann

I got to simulate the motion of photons in contracting spacetime

Richard Mann MPhys Theoretical Physics

Richard spent last summer on the Sheffield Undergraduate Research Experience (SURE) scheme — a six-to-eight week project that allows undergraduate students to conduct their own research. For his project, Richard simulated the motion of photons in contracting spacetime.

Josh McFayden

A project on the Higgs boson sparked my interest in the Large Hadron Collider

Josh McFayden MPhys Physics with Mathematics

After completing his degree in our department, Joshua has gone on to work on the ATLAS experiment at CERN's Large Hadron Collider in Switzerland.

Matthew Conroy

The skills I gained across my degree were invaluable during my NHS application process

Matthew Conroy MPhys Physics with Mathematics

After graduating with an MPhys in Physics with Maths, Matthew took part in the NHS Graduate Management Training Scheme and is now a Senior Information Analyst for Manchester Health and Care Commissioning.

Connor, Matthew and Jordan

We used our computer programming skills to help tackle unemployment

Connor, Matthew and Jordan BSc Physics

Areas of unemployment exist in any city. For their third year industrial group project, Connor Sheppard, Matthew Rowland and Jordan Foster worked with the Sheffield City Region local government institution to use their computer programming skills to identify the best sites to create low-skilled jobs.

Alexander Chilton

Physics is a degree that's very well respected around the world

Alexander Chilton Physics BSc

After completing his physics degree, Alexander went on to work in marketing and communications as part of a multi-million pound research partnership between BP and several top universities.

Alex Brown

My astrophysics placement in the Canary Islands has been an unforgettable experience

Alex Brown Physics and Astrophysics MPhys

Alex spent a year of his degree working at an international observatory on La Palma in the Canary Islands.

REF 2021 illustration showing University building and subject areas

Research Excellence Framework 2021

We have been rated 1st in the UK in terms of the quality of our research. In the latest REF, 100 per cent of research and impact from our department has been classed as world-leading or internationally excellent.

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