Manirathinam Shanmugasundaram

Manirathinam completed his masters degree in Communications and Signal Processing in 2018 and is currently working as a Network Engineer at Talink Ltd. 

Postgraduate life at Leeds

Manirathinam graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Electrical, Electronics and Communications Engineering from the Bannari Amman Institute of Technology, India before pursuing his masters degree at the University of Leeds. He chose Leeds because the University is ranked Top 100 in the world, and the School of Electronic and Electrical Engineering is ranked Top 10 in the UK. His strong interests in signal processing also drove him to study here, as he sees “wireless communication having huge potential in the future.”

“I really enjoyed my course. I feel that a lot of what we studied theoretically was transferred practically when we were working in the laboratories, providing us with a great insight on how things work. For example, my professors gave us deep insight on how to start our design from equations which led to a successful end product, which I consider to be a prime skill to be a successful engineer. Even though the academic and technical staff are highly skilled and experts in the field, they are very friendly and approachable in such a manner that I was able to learn better and improve myself. It was a good learning environment. “

Even though the academic and technical staff are highly skilled and experts in the field, they are very friendly and approachable in such a manner that I was able to learn better and improve myself. It was a good learning environment.

Masters project

For his masters research project, Manirathinam worked with Dr Paul Dean on terahertz (THz) receiver design, a part of Dr Dean’s research work, which is to replace X ray scanners in the future for a better eco-friendly environment. “My research project enabled me to work with Dr Dean with the design of RC filter circuits to gain better image output using noise reduction and image enhancement techniques.”

Building a professional career

After graduating from the University of Leeds, Manirathinam was employed immediately, and worked as a Network Support Technician at Firmenich, commissioning network gears and equipments. He later moved on to become a Network Consultant, supporting network Architects in the design and functionality of the network grid, protocols and security.

Manirathinam currently works as Network Engineer at Talink, where he covers multiple tech giant operations including Huawei, Vodafone and York National rail sites in the West Yorkshire region. He adds, “A typical work day involves monitoring the gateway for any trojans trying to get through, ensuring the network traffic is secure, and that firewalls are updated with the most recent patches.

Overall, I had a wonderful time at Leeds. The hands on learning approach and being engaged in research through project work gave me the required skills to kick start my professional career in the industry.”