School of Computing

Archived testimonials from former MSc students

The testimonials on this page were supplied by former students after they had graduated. The testimonials here are now somewhat dated. More recent testimonials are availible.

 

Richard Martin MSc Computer Science
Richard Martin
  • Course: MSc Computer Science
  • Graduation year: 2007
  • Current employer: Accenture
  • Job title: Associate Software Engineer
  • Testimonial received: December 2007

Richard Martin

What did you particularly enjoy about your time at Kent?

I enjoyed the smaller class sizes and the wide variety of topics covered in the course.

What were the most interesting things you learned on the course?

I found greatly increasing my ad-hoc programming knowledge with a more theoretical understanding to be one of the more interesting points of the course. I also found combining my skills with others to be interesting in the many group projects done on the course.

How did your studies help you find employment?

Taking the MSc Computer Science course gave me a solid base in Computer Science. Gaining my job required undertaking a technical interview which covered a lot of the software engineering and programming aspects that were covered in my course. Also, my job requires me to gain a qualification in Java in training before the course, which I've been fully prepared for by the Java taught within the course. Also, the group work fundamental in the course came in useful for several job applications.

Xiaoke Hu MSc Computer Science
Xiaoke Hu
  • Course: MSc Computer Science
  • Graduation year: 2004
  • Current employer: China Mobile Group
  • Job title: Supervisor, Management Training Centre
  • Testimonial received: December 2007

Xiaoke Hu

Being a graduate of the University of Kent has always made me feel proud. Studying there gave me both the skills (not only in computer science, but also an inner quality) and the spirit to qualify for my job. At present, I work for China Mobile Group Henan Co., Ltd. My daily work involves managing and developing the trainers of the company (we've got more than 1000 internal trainers here), designing and managing the leadership development project, as well as administrating e-learning. The company has 18 local branches, and nearly 30,000,000 mobile subscribers. Among the 31 companies of China Mobile Group it ranks 5th and is still getting better.

Paul Kilgour MSc Computer Science
Paul Kilgour
  • Course: MSc Computer Science
  • Graduation year: 2006
  • Current employer: SAP
  • Job title: Consultant
  • Testimonial received: February 2008

Paul Kilgour

What did you particularly enjoy about your time at Kent?

I found the lecturers to be friendly and approachable. Although the course was tough it was enjoyable and stimulating, backed up by excellent facilities. The group work was especially rewarding, being a chance to interact with the other students and build on my interpersonal skills. All in all, I met lots of interesting people from various backgrounds and spent a brilliant year at Kent.

What were the most interesting things you learned on the course?

I found the Logic & Artificial Intelligence part of the course to be very stimulating. I also enjoyed and got a lot out of the Computer Networks and Communications module.

How did your studies help you find employment?

I found that having a Kent MSc gave me a head start in the jobs market. Interviewers seemed especially interested in my experience of group work as a team member and as a team leader. I had several interesting offers from, among others, Telecoms and Consulting companies, and was able to choose the one that seemed to offer the best prospects for the future.

Alex Wescomb MSc Computer Science
Alex Wescomb

Alex Wescomb

What did you particularly enjoy about your time at Kent?

I found that all of the lecturers seemed to be really enthusiastic about their subjects and this spread quickly to the students - as a result most of the course was enjoyable!

What were the most interesting things you learned on the course?

Personally I liked learning about the impact computing has on our personal and working lives and how it can be used to help us achieve our goals in these areas.

How did your studies help you find employment?

The balance between teaching us about the forefront of computing, to enable us to move onto research positions, and teaching us skills that are usable from Day 1, e.g. commercially-used IDEs, software development lifecycles, version control software - the breadth, depth and, importantly, the usefulness of the teaching really impressed my prospective employers.

Andrew Gibbons MSc Computer Science
Andrew Gibbons
  • Course: MSc Computer Science
  • Graduation year: 2006
  • Current employer: P&O Ferries
  • Job title: Test Analyst
  • Testimonial received: December 2006

Andrew Gibbons (PGCE CEng MBCS CITP)

What did you particularly enjoy about your time at Kent?

My first degree was in Computing Science, so the course for me was largely about updating my skill set. What I enjoyed most about the course was that it reminded me how much I enjoyed studying computer science and what a stimulating and varied subject it is.

What were the most interesting things you learned on the course?

I enjoy programming, so I enjoyed the Java and Prolog parts of the course. The things that were new to me that I found most interesting were constraint logic programming and the lectures on genetic algorithms/programming and nature-inspired computing.

How did your studies help you find employment?

By giving me the confidence and up-to-date skills to re-enter the software industry after a break of four years.

Mathew Taylor MSc Computer Science
  • Course: MSc Computer Science
  • Graduation year: 2006
  • Current employer: Vision360
  • Job title: Multimedia Developer
  • Testimonial received: December 2006

Mathew Taylor

What did you particularly enjoy about your time at Kent?

Kent University Boat Club.

High quality of teaching and teachers on the CS course; the teachers were all interested in your development over the course and were very accessible out of lectures for further discussion and advice.

The challenge of the CS course; the CS course was very intense and you were challenged and pushed throughout the year through the assessments, however it was a great feeling to see your progress and development from a complete novice through the increased difficulty of the assessments.

The Dissertation; Having 3 months to focus on one area of study which I was particularly interested in, and to develop a piece of software which I had first thought about 5 years previously.

What were the most interesting things you learned on the course?

Networks, Software Engineering, Design and Development techniques, to be honest the entire course was interesting.

How did your studies help you find employment?

Having a Masters in computer science immediately puts your CV to the top of the pile; the Computer Science department at Kent is recognised as a high quality department and prospective employers seem happy to accept that you have a good solid level of knowledge of Java and software development.

Stelios Omirou MSc Computer Science
Stelios Omirou
  • Course: MSc Computer Science
  • Graduation year: 2006
  • Current employer: Greek Army (military service)
  • Testimonial received: November 2006

Stelios Omirou

What did you particularly enjoy about your time at Kent?

Infrastructure. Well equipped labs and many computer facilities, some of those accessible 24 hours a day. I had the chance to see in practice many parts of the theory taught in lectures.

The campus. The campus is located on a hill and it has a very nice view to the town of Canterbury and the Cathedral. It has a lot of green and it was pretty relaxing and helped to focus when I was staring at town while I was having a break between lectures.

What were the most interesting things you learned on the course?

I think that the course covers pretty well the basic principles of every field that is taught but especially the ones of Object Oriented Programming. Another important thing is that the students have to work in groups in the majority of the projects. Learning how to work in groups was extremely useful as we will have to do the same as employees. Project weeks were a great experience also.

Jean Irving MSc Computer Science
Jean Irving
  • Course: MSc Computer Science
  • Graduation year: 2004
  • Current employer: University of Kent
  • Job title: Research associate
  • Testimonial received: March 2006

Jean Irving

Before joining the MSc course Jean had worked as a teacher.

For some time I had wanted to develop my computing skills and the Computer Science MSc at Kent offered me an ideal opportunity to do so. Having worked for some time I was able to fund the course myself and I lived at home, so my husband took care of expenses.

I was impressed by Kent's reputation in Computer Science, and I was interested in the range of modules offered. My interview with the course co-ordinator confirmed to me that I would find the course stimulating.

The course was very intensive, with most of my time outside lectures spent researching, reading, or working on exercises and assignments. It culminated in a computing project and dissertation, which required perseverance and time management skills to create a useful application and accompanying documentation within the timescale.

The university also provided me with a voucher to undertake the Sun Certified Programmer Certification which, in conjunction with achieving a Distinction on the MSc, gives me an edge when applying for positions in the computing field.

I am currently working as a Research Associate at the university in the field of Hospital Informatics. This involves working closely with consultants from Kent and Canterbury Hospital providing the computer applications to facilitate their research. This has enabled me to continue to study aspects of Computer Science and to enhance the skills that I learnt on the MSc course. It is a worthwhile and rewarding job that I find much more exciting than anything that I have done before. As well as this, I teach IT three hours a week.

Despite the hard work and pressure involved, I got immense satisfaction from the MSc course. Having been on the other side of the desk for some time I really appreciated the environment and the efforts that were made to help us learn. I made some good friends amongst the students and now have contacts in China and Korea. In many ways it has given a new direction to my life and has been well worth the cost.

The one-year course is intensive but I believe that it proved more beneficial to me than part-time study would have done. You get the chance to wrestle with concepts without interruptions and timetables. I would definitely recommend it to anyone with interest and determination.

Steve Grindle MSc Computer Science
  • Course: MSc Computer Science
  • Graduation year: 2004
  • Current employer: JHC
  • Job title: Analyst Programmer
  • Testimonial received: November 2006

Steve Grindle

What did you particularly enjoy about your time at Kent?

I enjoyed the campus environment of the University, and the sports facilities, particularly the sports centre and the rowing club. I enjoyed the atmosphere of the course itself, discussing topics with fellow students and working on interesting but challenging assignments, and particularly the sense of achievement I felt after completing the course.

What were the most interesting things you learned on the course?

I enjoyed the whole course, but in particular the intense two-week introduction was excellent, and I learnt a lot of material in a short time, preparing me for the rest of the course. I particularly enjoyed the variety of material and the teaching on the Logic and Artificial Intelligence module, which encouraged me to research areas that I am still interested in. The final research project was also an excellent opportunity, allowing me to put what I had learnt on the course to use on a real-world project, working with healthcare providers.

How did your studies help you find employment?

The programming skills I was taught, and in particular my Java Certification which I gained through the University of Kent, helped me get a job where I could program and carry on developing my skills. My MSc project, which involved gathering requirements for and prototyping a decision-support system for doctors, allowed me to demonstrate that I could practically apply what I had learnt.

Samantha Osborne MSc Computer Science
  • Course: MSc Computer Science
  • Graduation year: 2003
  • Current employer: University of Kent
  • Job title: Information & IT Officer
  • Testimonial received: November 2006

Samantha Osborne

What did you particularly enjoy about your time at Kent?

The teaching staff were really approachable and you really felt that you could ask them questions no matter how basic. I really enjoyed the fact that we were encouraged to be challenged and stretched but the subject matter and to think about different approaches. The dissertation really gave me an opportunity to explore something which I'd wanted to know more as well as being able to develop my programming skills. The course group were fantastic and we were encouraged to work with each other from the pre-term weeks right at the beginning which gave us a real sense of belonging.

What were the most interesting things you learned on the course?

My favourite course was networking because it was just so interesting to find out how something that many of us use but take for granted actually works. I also particularly enjoyed the programming challenges we were set and it was interesting to see practical examples using the Lego Mindstorms sets.

How did your studies help you find employment?

I originally decided to do the MSc in Computer Science to formalize some of my previous IT experience in order to get a better job. Not only have I managed to get a much better job, it has broadened my horizons and many of the courses such as software engineering that I took on the degree have given me skills which I have been able to develop in my current work.

Lawrence Beadle MSc Computer Science
  • Course: MSc Computer Science
  • Graduation year: 2003
  • Current employer: University of Kent
  • Job title: PhD research student
  • Testimonial received: November 2006

Lawrence Beadle

What did you particularly enjoy about your time at Kent?

There are three main elements to this.

  1. I really enjoyed the pretty much all of the course. I admit at times there was a lot of work and that sections of it were quite hard, but it always seemed to be structured and the support was really good through the course.
  2. Being a campus University, it encourages people on the course to meet up. Sometimes having people around you who are going through same course gives you the support you need as well as encouraging study groups, which is an important part of getting through the course.
  3. The Kent campus at Canterbury has very good sports facilities, which I found very useful when I wanted to take a break and do something completely different.

What were the most interesting things you learned on the course?

I found the most interesting things were software engineering and the different programming techniques. I found the dissertation section of the course was most satisfying as it allowed you to put into the practice all the things you learnt to achieve a goal of your own design.

How did your studies help you find employment?

Immediately after I completed my MSc I went to work with HSBC Bank on their Management Trainee Scheme. I think that these days more and more people have Bachelors Degrees and I found that just having the MSc helped me get a little further up the ladder in the selection process.

Dr Jacqui Whalley MSc Computer Science
  • Course: MSc Computer Science
  • Graduation year: 2001
  • Current employer: Auckland University of Technology, New Zealand
  • Job title: Lecturer
  • Testimonial received: November 2006

Dr Jacqui Whalley

What did you particularly enjoy about your time at Kent?

The community and support provided by the other students on the Masters course. And of course the location, I felt at home in no time, Canterbury is such a beautiful and historic city with plenty of extra curricula activities, great pubs, great places to eat and great shops.

What were the most interesting things you learned on the course?

I absolutely loved programming and the experience gained on the team software engineering project translated well into the teams that I have worked with since graduating. The teachers were enthusiastic and excellent in their approach to teaching, I learnt more than I could ever have imagined.

How did your studies help you find employment?

Having an MSc in CS from Kent paved the way to a Lectureship in New Zealand. The research I undertook at Kent was well supported and supervised and resulted in publications that evidenced my ability to undertake quality research. The core foundation of skills and knowledge that I gained at Kent allowed me to undertake my first job after graduation developing a large Geographical Information System with confidence. In my current job I apply the techniques and teaching approaches that I was exposed to as a student at Kent to the design and running of computer programming and graphics & animation courses. I still find myself saying "at Kent... they did this... or I learnt that ... or we did such and such.." this to me demonstrates the quality of teaching at the computing laboratory, the great time you have as a student at Kent and most importantly the applicability of what I learnt then to my everyday working life now.

School of Computing, University of Kent, Canterbury, Kent, CT2 7NF

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Last Updated: 17/04/2013