Aran Bansal

Why did you originally apply to do BEng Aerospace Engineering at Birmingham?

I chose to apply to Aerospace Engineering at the University of Birmingham because I had a keen interest in Further Mathematics and Physics at school. This built on a lifelong passion for vehicles, specifically aircraft and cars. From a young age, I aspired to either fly aircraft or design aircraft, I feel very fortunate to be studying to design aircraft in the future. I chose to study at Birmingham over other universities due to the campus and teaching staff. At the Offer Holders’ Day in 2021, I was specifically impressed by the Spacecraft Module Lead which encouraged me to prioritise Birmingham over all other choices.

What do you think are the best points of BEng Aerospace Engineering?

The course is a well-rounded and structured approach to Aerospace Engineering. There is a great continuity between first and second year learnings, with most modules building on first year principles. This means that the difference in difficulty is relatively low between first and second year. The academics on the course are very passionate, which helps to make even the more difficult subjects very engaging! For example the course lead, Professor Williams, teaches Airframe Design and Flight Dynamics which is a fascinating subject. Professor Williams’ experiences in the industry significantly benefits the content taught in lectures.

What’s the best thing about studying at the University of Birmingham?

The campus at the University is second to none. This was a key factor in my decision to studying at Birmingham as the campus sits head and shoulders above almost all other universities. The Engineering department at the University has had significant investment over the past five years. This investment can be seen in the new dry labs and teaching space in the Engineering building and Collaborative Teaching Laboratory on campus. All Engineering buildings are situated within a fifteen minute walk from door to door rather than being dotted sporadically across a city centre. In addition, the wider campus at the University is fantastic. The Sports complex, the Great Hall in Aston Webb, the Bramall Music Building, the Teaching and Learning Building, and the Library, are all key highlights of the campus. Last but not least, the main highlight of the campus is the Joseph Chamberlain Clock Tower, or “Old Joe”. The clock tower is the tallest freestanding clock tower in the world.

What’s your highlight of your time at the University?

It is difficult to select a specific highlight of my experience at the University so far. Having started my second year of the course, an academic highlight of my experience was scoring excellent marks in the exams at the end of my first year. I enjoyed working with other students on my course to present a 15-minute slideshow on the development of a Formula 1 Exhaust Manifold. This was very different to a typical coursework submission and I enjoy presentations. I have found having a weekly meeting with my personal tutor to be very beneficial. Tutors offer a space for advice on the course and managing responsibilities associated with university life. Their experience with internships and graduate schemes is very helpful as these schemes are competitive. Outside of the course, my involvement in societies at university has been really enjoyable.

What advice would you give to students thinking about studying BEng Aerospace Engineering?

I would suggest reading through a Further Maths A Level textbook before starting the course. This will give you a significant advantage when arriving at University as the Engineering Maths 1 module is predominantly Further Maths A Level! In addition, Matlab practice would be very good. Completing the Matlab Onramp and Fundamentals course on Mathworks are two courses that would be beneficial.