British Science Week 5-14 March

This year’s theme is ‘Innovating for the future’. As Scotland’s number one University for the proportion of graduates entering high skilled employment (87.4%) we caught up with our graduates to find out how their degrees have helped their careers and what advice they would give to the innovators of the future.

Aysem Zorlu – BSc Mathematics (Hons)

Aysem is the founder of travel-oriented marketplace focused on local experiences Loacal.com and founder and market analytics manager of Alin Ltd.

She graduated in 2011 and has since pursued a career in Data Science supporting her clients in customer behaviours, product analysis and marketing.  

With two start-ups under her belt, she’s had to apply analytical thinking to real-life projects while orchestrating a cross functional team of web developers to designers.

“I’ve been interested in STEM ever since we had a Commodore computer growing up. My family all have STEM degrees,” Aysem proclaims.

“I believe life involves learning from successes and mistakes and my experience in founding an award-winning start-up pushed me a lot for this learning.”

“Interpersonal skills have never been my shining talent. But since I graduated, I’ve learnt that not everyone is analytical and there can be more than one right answer.”

“I worked hard on these skills and have been a guest speaker at more than fifteen events since. Constantly working on something will improve your skills, even if it takes time.”

Mohsen Amiribesheli – MSc Computing with International Business

Mohsen is a research technology manager at Konica Minolta Global R&D, a Japanese technology conglomerate with branches in 49 countries worldwide.

His role oversees a portfolio of public and privately funded projects, with a strong focus on Artificial Intelligence and future networking.

Prior to joining Konica Minolta, he was a member of the Machine Intelligence Group at Bournemouth University, where he focused on designing an intelligent environment for improving the quality of care for people with Dementia.

“As far as I can remember I was fascinated by science,” said Mohsen.

“To me, computers are effective tools that enable people to solve rather complex problems. While I was a student in Dundee, I was inspired by a group of talented lecturers and mentors, personally, Professor Annalu Waller had a great impression on me.”

“My advice to the innovators of the future is to just try to improve every day, even if it is tiny. Be ready to make mistakes, and when you make them don’t get stuck on them. Finally, nothing great can be achieved without positivity (sometimes naive) and discipline.”

Thomas Riccio – MEng (Hons) Civil Engineering

Thomas graduated in 2019 and is now working as a geotechnical engineer at Cathie Group. His role includes design work for critical offshore infrastructure such as wind turbines and offshore substations.

His job has taken him to work across German, Belgian and UK waters, in under two years into his role.

He also works on cable infrastructure and onshore geotechnical works for upcoming windfarm substations.

Another part of the role is engaging in academic and industrial research which varies from feasibility studies, to the development of design methodologies for foundations.

The multidisciplinary nature of Civil Engineering at Dundee has clearly had an impact on his career and interests.

“From a young age I was immediately gripped by the built environment, how it works and how I can help develop it,” explains Thomas.

“In my 3rd year, I had a focus on renewable energy, the way in which it can be generated and how we can include that infrastructure in our daily lives. My thesis concentrated on this and I worked alongside the hydrodynamic research team during my final years at the University.”

“During my time with this team I travelled to China and shared my study on the feasibility of marine renewable devices offshore in the UK, which was well received by leading experts at Harbin Engineering University.”

“My biggest challenge was adjusting from University to a job. It is different, fast paced and it’s challenging (in a good way!).”

“Work hard but enjoy the things that make you tick. The time you enjoy wasting is not wasted time.Have goals and have options. Make sure you explore all avenues and make informed choices. Have a brilliant time.”

Jakub Vavra – MSc Computing

Jakub works for Avast Software in Prague as a threat operations analyst with a focus on mobile phone applications. His job is to maintain automated malware detection systems, develop new programs to actively look for and stop malicious campaigns targeting mobile phone users and documenting malicious applications and their impact on users.

It is a dynamic job that requires investigative thinking when exposing harmful applications and programs.

Jakub’s undergraduate degree was in Business Economics with Marketing. He joined the MSc Computing conversion degree without any prior knowledge of the subject.

“I wanted to combine a personal interest in computers and software with a formal degree and the Master’s was a great basis that allowed me to secure a job in STEM,” explains Jakub.

“I am inspired by seeing the real-world implications of my work, as the majority of applications I deal with attempt to steal personal data, login credentials and banking details among others.”

“Since joining Avast, I had to learn how to work with numerous in-house developed systems and platforms. After my initial training, I got involved with fine tuning existing systems and creating new programs to aid in protecting users from malware.”

“I discovered several widespread malicious campaigns targeting mobile phone users shortly after joining the new team and wrote several blog posts and press releases about this.”

“My advice is to self-reflect, pinpoint areas that you think you would be interested in and would have ideas to contribute to. Selecting a field to specialise in may take a while, this process took a few years for me and I realised sometime after my first degree that I was interested in another field.”

Manojkumar (Dominic) Ravichandran – MSc Data Science

Dominic is co-founder of two start-ups: Extrinsik Ltd. (a consultancy to help international students build their career prospects in the UK) and UniCash Ltd (a student discount platform for local shops and online vendors).

He graduated with a degree in Mechanical Engineering before deciding to study a Master’s in Data Science.

Originally from India, Dominic had to adapt to a new way of life and study in the UK but relied on help from friends who were also studying in the UK.

“Studying Data Science was probably the best decision in my life so far. Data insights are the best thing which shows the actual representation of reality, which you can't see with your naked eye. It’s given me the skill to be an effective decision maker and launch my companies.”, shares Dominic.

“I am someone who graduated during the pandemic, I am from India and I still managed to get my endorsement and visa from Home Office UK and now I am a co-founder of two companies.”

“It wasn't easy obviously, but what matters is to have hope and keep pushing yourself to the limit.”

“Life has both ups and downs; we have to embrace both. Things can go from downhill to uphill any moment, so don't lose hope! Follow your dreams!”