The opportunity of full-time academic research experience in your 4th year sounds exciting, right? While a fantastic option, it’s also rather daunting. If you find yourself asking questions like “How do I move abroad?”, “What does Physics with a Year Abroad actually look like?”, “How does this interface with my degree?”, then this might be the place for you.
Returning from my year at the University of Melbourne, I share essential guidance on the application process, finding a supervisor, how the research year unfolds, and the structure of my final year in Edinburgh.
By Jack Liken
Application process
There’s a bit of a myth that you can only enter the Physics with a Year Abroad (PwYA) programme if you’re a straightforward Physics student. However, this is a misconception! Anyone on an MPhys course can swap to the PwYA programme – whether you are theoretical physicists, astrophysicists, mathematical physicists. While your degree name will change, as will the opportunity to take classes in your 4th year, it would be an understatement to say that a year of research experience in your area of interest is a brilliant opportunity.
So, how does one actually become eligible for a research year abroad? There are three main factors: your grades in 1st & 2nd year, the interview process, and your grades in 3rd year.
As a student who could potentially go abroad and represent the University of Edinburgh, the School needs to ensure you have the necessary physics and maths knowledge and motivation in order for your project exchange to run as smoothly as possible. Students need to have done well in courses to proceed to the interview stage (any special circumstances are taken into account for the selection process).
Next up, the interview, where you share with the School’s Programme Coordinator (Dr Pascal Reiter) your motivation for going abroad, your selection of research institutes, and other reasons pertinent to the year abroad process. You’re not expected to know everything at this stage, but understanding where you are and where you’d like to be is important. If you successfully pass both stages, you’re clear to go abroad, provided you pass the grade requirements for your 3rd year.
Finding a Supervisor
As you enter your second semester, you’ll be tasked with finding a supervisor. If TRIUMF is your chosen destination, you’ll be asked to choose from a pre-defined set of project proposals. For other institutions you may be required to liaise with an academic staff member and develop a project proposal. For example, I got in touch with a few professors at the University of Melbourne before deciding on an astrophysics project with Prof. Michele Trenti. When liaising with such staff members, it’s important to do your research: Does this person supervise students? Has this person published in areas I’m interested in? What are their current research focuses? Make sure you are prepared and well-informed. Oh, and use your university email – for the sake of legitimacy.
Important Documents
As you can imagine, there’s a lot of documentation associated with the year abroad process. I won’t comment on this too heavily (in fear of misinforming), but the Programme Coordinator and SWAY (University’s ‘Study and Work Away Service’) team are always around to help.
Some important things to consider: Have you secured a VISA? Have you secured health insurance? Have you received all necessary vaccinations? Have you created a ‘research plan’ document? Do you have a Confirmation of Enrolment Certificate (or analogue)? Have you secured accommodation? Have you applied for the Turing Fund, if accessible?
How does the Year Unfold?
The PwYA programme follows the same timing as back in Edinburgh – you start in September, and finish in April-May. You should aim to initiate your first supervisor meeting by the end of Welcome Week, and get started on your research. The first month or so should be spent familiarising yourself with the research field. You should learn how to use required lab equipment or software, you should read up on the relevant theory, and you should investigate the literature surrounding your research.
As the year progresses, you should expect a number of successes and a number of failures. The most important aspect to focus on are consistency and initiative. You should maintain a research diary – a log of your findings, decisions, results, and anything else you care to add. This will aid you further down the line, when you are assessed on your research. Outside of assessment deadlines, there isn’t much structure to the year – as is the case with academic research. Most of the time you will be working on unseen problems, so it’s natural to have no idea what the future holds. Again, consistency and initiative are key. Towards the end of the year you should have collected some important scientific findings that you can present in your dissertation. This will be the most important piece of work you produce over the course of your Master’s degree, and you should prioritise it accordingly.
Finally, upon your return to Edinburgh, you will be expected to give a presentation on your research in front of a panel of academics from SoPA.
Entering your Final Year
Your final year at the University of Edinburgh will be quite different to that of your peers. You will take the year 4 compulsory courses, your Master’s dissertation will be reduced to 20 credits, and you won’t present your Master’s research. You will need to use the resulting 30 credits to choose additional courses. The idea is that you make up for the lack of coursework in your year abroad, while your research workload is decreased.
Reflection
You may be wondering how I benefited from this experience. First and foremost, I feel more prepared for my working life – I now have a much better understanding of where my interests lie, both in physics and in terms of my career. I have a full year of academic research experience under my belt, meaning I’ve heavily developed my critical thinking and problem-solving skills, and I have more experience with specific software and equipment. I’ve built lasting professional connections and friendships. I’m a more independent and well-rounded person, and I’m not so scared of living far from my family. I have developed a new mentality, and I find myself geared towards taking initiative wherever possible, and taking full responsibility for my professional development.
My biggest regret is spending a year away from my friends, family, and girlfriend. Unfortunately the physical separation does impact existing relationships, and it means you can’t spend as much time with the people you care about. But if you make the effort, you can still engage with these people, and socialise online. It’s brought me a lot of joy spending time with those I care about on my return.
Overall, I am glad that I completed the research year abroad. I believe it encourages significant personal growth and opens a lot of opportunities for your career. I’m grateful to the University’s Study and Work Away Service for their support, and to the School of Physics and Astronomy for establishing and maintaining the PwYA degree programme.
Further information
Visit the Student Information Site for information about deadlines, applications and year abroad destinations:
