Sheshaddri
- Course: Chemistry MChem
Sheshaddri is an undergraduate student, currently studying MChem Chemistry at the University of Leeds.
Sheshaddri chose to study chemistry because it was the subject he enjoyed the most during his A-Levels. As he hasn’t decided what kind of job he wants after university, he picked a course that would teach him transferable skills that he can apply to a wide range of careers.
Highly employable graduates
He was particularly drawn to the MChem course at Leeds due to the option of carrying out an industrial placement during third year. He was interested in the opportunity to work as a chemist in the UK for a year, and then graduate with a Master’s degree after one more year of university.
Leeds seemed to strike the perfect balance between academic prowess and boasting a great student life, and I was really impressed by the university’s reputation of producing highly employable graduates.
Specialist facilities and laboratories
“The pandemic meant that the majority of my lectures were delivered online. This is why most of my first-year highlights are from labs.”
We carried out a bunch of cool experiments across synthetic and physical chemistry, such as synthesising paracetamol and observing the emission spectrum of a hydrogen atom.
Excellent teaching
The professors were passionate, supportive and more than happy to help Sheshaddri if he faced any difficulty understanding challenging material.
“My tutor, Dr Chris Pask, was incredibly helpful when it came to this, and I would regularly arrange meetings with him to discuss content I was struggling with.”
Being the linguaphile that Sheshaddri is, he also took Beginners Spanish as his Discovery Module and realised it was an excellent way to take a break from chemistry.
Clubs and societies
Sheshaddri served as Social Secretary of the Italian Society and helped to organise events for the society such as movie nights and an Italian quiz night.
“My biggest highlight would have to be our Give It A Go (GIAG) event that we held at the start of second semester, right after exams. We organized a free pizza night during which we served authentic Roman-style pizza. We managed to attract around 60 people and judging by the fact the pizza was gone in 30 minutes, I would say the event was an absolute hit!”
Leeds: The perfect student city
Coming from Malaysia, food was a huge factor for Sheshaddri when deciding on which university to pick. Luckily, he was surprised to find that the city has a bunch of great Asian restaurants and a thriving Thai food scene.
Leeds is the perfect city for students! It’s not as big and overwhelming (or expensive) as cities like London or Manchester which makes it easy to cover on foot, and it’s small enough that it maintains that unique town-like feel.
Juggling assignments, a social life and committee responsibilities has developed Sheshaddri’s time management skills, enabling him to find a work/life balance that works for him. He has also learned how to work well under pressure and adapt to change.
“I’ve met so many amazing people from every corner of the globe during my time here, and this has without a doubt boosted my confidence and improved my interpersonal skills. The university has a ton of great societies to get involved with and they provided excellent opportunities to meet like-minded people, step out of my comfort zone and be brave enough to try new things.”