Jamie Howard is a Computer Science with a Year in Industry student<\/p>\n
I actually came here to study Maths and completed the first year but realised it wasn\u2019t for me. It was very heavy on theory with no obvious real-world application. But computer Science seemed like a good compromise: it had a lot of technical content, which I do enjoy, but with the year in industry you get to experience the real world and see theories being applied \u2013 that clinched it for me.<\/p>\n
Really well. The first two years were very good, and now I\u2019m back for the final year the step up in the intensity of the work is noticeable \u2013 but the year in industry has helped prepare me for this; without it I think this last year would be a struggle. But I feel much better at time management, keeping to deadlines and so on.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s excellent. In the first two years I found lecturers to be very approachable and I often emailed for help and received prompt replies \u2013 even though I didn\u2019t always send them in office hours. Now, in this last year, we work on a group project rather than a dissertation, and have weekly meetings with our supervisor; but they are always available at other times too. I think none of the supervisors have more than a couple of projects each to look after, so they\u2019re never swamped and are always able to help.<\/p>\n
We\u2019re building an Android app that tracks the buses on campus; then you can upload your own timetable of activities and work out your journeys. I think it has potential for Kent students and it would be great to see it go live.<\/p>\n
It was good \u2013 and different to what I had expected. I was working with Accenture and had anticipated being given purely technical tasks, but in fact had a great diversity of roles \u2013 some involving things I\u2019d never done before, including project management, which was very interesting and involved more \u2018soft\u2019 skills, such as dealing with people. It was quite a challenging year but I was always working alongside another team member so had good training. Projects I worked on with Accenture included six months with EDF Energy, which was hectic and intense, and two months with Discovery.<\/p>\n
I haven’t thought too much about specific industries I would like to go into. Most of my work at Accenture was with web development, which I really enjoyed. The app development I\u2019m doing now is new to me so quite challenging, but enjoyable. I’m hoping that if I go back to Accenture I will be able to give both things a try in the real world.<\/p>\n
It\u2019s very good. I lived in Park Wood for my first year and shared a five-bedroom house with students of roughly the same age and interests. We became good friends and I\u2019ve gone on to rent with them off campus.<\/p>\n
For work, because the library is being renovated, I tend to stay within the School of Computing. But there\u2019s lots of space there, everything is well-equipped and you can always find somewhere quiet when you need to concentrate. Socially there\u2019s so much going on \u2013 more than enough, in fact! I wish I had more time to make use of it all.<\/p>\n
I work at a computer shop in Canterbury that specialises in Apple products, and I play drums in several bands, including the University\u2019s Big Band.<\/p>\n
People always say make the most of these years \u2013 and this is so true. It can seem daunting meeting so many new people and finding like-minded students, so I\u2019d say definitely get involved in any societies that pique your interest.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"