Povilas Pipiras

Povilas Pipiras is currently in his fourth year of Chemical Engineering (Industrial) MEng, BEng degree, having recently completed his Year in Industry. 

When Povilas was choosing which university that he wanted to go to, he focused on a few essential areas that were important to him. He explained: “firstly, the city and university had to be welcoming to international students, secondly, there had to be a big focus on research in my field of studies, lastly, social life of the city had to be extraordinary. Based on this, I decided that University of Leeds was my first choice. I haven’t looked back since!”

Developing engineering skills for his future career

Povilas has studied a wide range of compulsory and optional modules and has enjoyed doing project work. He found projects that challenged him to be the most rewarding. He said: “Usually, those projects were big team projects – this means that there was a great emphasis on teamwork and communication.”

“Having done a placement year, I can appreciate how the projects or topics covered in lectures prepared me for real tasks I will face in the workplace as an engineer. If I had to pick the most challenging and rewarding project so far it would be our group project on Ethylene Glycol manufacturing.”

As for the quality of teaching, Povilas thinks the best part about his degree is that: “the lecturers are real experts of their fields, and they really care about educating future engineers. Professors offer opportunities to discuss, challenge, and thinking for oneself is encouraged.”

Having done a placement year, I can appreciate how the projects or topics covered in lectures prepared me for real tasks I will face in the workplace as an engineer.

Specialist facilities and libraries

Povilas has gained experience of using cutting-edge equipment in the specialist research laboratories. He said: “the quality of the facilities is extremely good, and everything is close by within walking distance.”

“There are options to go to places that one enjoys – libraries for studying, coffee shops or Leeds University Union for interacting with other students, the Edge for exercising or swimming, parks with bunnies for when the weather is nice.”

Joining student societies

Leeds University Union has over 100 societies, from sports clubs to Panto Society. Povilas said: “I have joined three societies, the ChemEng Society, Ultimate Frisbee Society, Casual Kickabout Society. The societies were a great way to meet new people and make friends and I enjoyed being a part of them.”

Year in Industry

Povilas was supported by the employability service to secure his Year in Industry placement. He said: “The employability team drills you from day one that it is important to have internships on your CV to make it stand out from the rest. The tutorials with the employability team motivated me to secure a placement. I remember looking at placement advertisements and polishing my CV from year one.”

“Securing a placement required a lot of time, determination and will, but in the end, I had the opportunity to do a 13 – month placement at Nissan Motors as a Research and Development Engineer.”

Reflecting on his experience, Povilas said: “The placement was a phenomenal opportunity to try on an engineer’s shoes. I had a great time during the 13 months of being an engineer – I had the opportunity to travel, network, innovate and link everything I learned in university to the industry. Another great benefit was improving my English skills from writing and reading thousands of emails and documents.”

The employability team drills you from day one that it is important to have internships on your CV to make it stand out from the rest. The tutorials with the employability team motivated me to secure a placement.

Planning for the future

Povilas is still considering his future career plans, however: “I can confidently say that the past four years made me more adaptable to different cultures, principles, and norms, academically and socially. At the University of Leeds, inclusivity is greatly important. Many lecturers and students are from abroad and day – to – day interactions allowed me to understand and appreciate the diverse ways everyone approaches problems.”

“I think that an undergraduate degree should be spend figuring out one's goals, what one likes and dislikes. Certainly, that is what I did.”

“I think University of Leeds is a great place for that due to the many social opportunities provided by the university and the shear amount of students in Leeds. At the University of Leeds, social life and self - discovery is as important as the academic side.”

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Find out more about studying Chemical Engineering (Industrial) MEng, BEng.