Chunyan Hou

What company are you working for, what is your role and what does it involve?

Before I came to the UK for the Masters’ degree studies, I worked as an environmental specialist to provide environmental consultancy to Asian Development Bank for their large-scaled infrastructure projects in China.

What experiences at Leeds do you think have particularly helped with your career/will help with your future career?

Studying at Leeds improved my knowledge in environmental engineering, which has broadened the horizon of my future career. My English skills have also improved at Leeds, which will help me to develop a career at an international setting.

Looking back, why did you choose to study your particular course and why did you choose the University of Leeds?

Environmental engineering, especially in terms of water and wastewater treatment technique, was one of the main areas I wished to improve in my previous career, and the University of Leeds was the only university in the UK to offer this course. 

What was the best aspect of the course/the University and why? Any highlights?

The course highlighted fundamental skills in water, wastewater and solid waste treatment and management and also provided broader knowledge in the related fields of water resources, bioenergy and project management. These form the core of environmental engineering. The course taught us the main ideas and concepts of the field of environmental engineering and provided chances for us to carry out further research in our future career or studies. I think this was the best aspect of studying at the university.

What would you say to students thinking about studying the same course at Leeds/thinking about the same career?

If you want to strengthen your ability in water, wastewater and solid waste engineering design in an efficient way, this one-year Master’s degree course at the University of Leeds is a good choice. Applying wasn’t complicated and there was no need to take GRE exams. The cost (including both the tuition and the living cost) was reasonable for a postgraduate education and it’s also rational and feasible from a timing and financial point of view. The one-year of study was very intense and tough, but I obtained a Distinction degree after working hard. Studying at Leeds was challenging at times but I really enjoyed my time there.