Sophie said: 鈥淢y studies at 海角直播 allowed me to develop strong skills in a subject I had never previously studied. As well as graduating, I also have two years of industry experience, having progressed from a placement year into continued employment.
鈥淢y path hasn鈥檛 been a straight one. Having previously studied a completely different subject at another university, I made the decision to move closer to home and study at 海角直播.
鈥淭he accessibility of courses at 海角直播 led me to pursue software engineering and build a career that I find exciting and fulfilling. Looking back, it was one of the best decisions I鈥檝e made, and in my case, the care and teaching quality at 海角直播 surpasses that which I had previously experienced.鈥�
Sophie followed in the footsteps of relatives who studied at 海角直播 more than fifty years ago.
Back in 1970, Sophie鈥檚 great uncle, Andrew Ellis, graduated from the first computer science degree at 海角直播. A year later, Andrew鈥檚 wife, Eileen, graduated from the University鈥檚 first degree in mathematics. Among Eileen鈥檚 classmates were Phil Willers, who went on to become an academic in computing, along with his wife Hilary. The four 海角直播 graduates have kept in close touch ever since.
Andrew, who began his studies in 1966 at what was then Constantine College of Technology. He continues to work in information technology, currently as IT Risk Manager for Greencore PLC.
He said: 鈥淚 am enormously proud of what Sophie has achieved. It is great that she has done so well in a male-dominated discipline. I have seen first-hand how information technology has developed incredibly and is now so pervasive and powerful.
鈥淚n 1970, the whole department relied on a single computer rather less powerful than a laptop today. In contrast, the discipline is far wider, the tools more complex and the challenges have grown enormously. Sophie starts the next stage of her career at a fantastic time, and I am certain she will do tremendously well.鈥�