Maria Raposo De Lima is a current student on the MSc in Advanced Mechanical Engineering, and the current Course Representative.

Why did you choose the AME course and what was your background before it?

I have always been enthusiastic about discovering and applying analytical methods to understand and solve complex problems in our society. After studying my BSc in Mechanical Engineering at IST Lisbon I decided to pursue further study in this field abroad. Imperial College London was my first choice. It's a world-class university, and I admire Imperial’s track record in research and innovation.

How are you finding your time on the course and what do you most enjoy about it?

I am having a great time on the course. Imperial has a unique academic environment! I interact every day with top academics from all over the world with such high ambitions... I can say there is a competitive but very collaborative environment between AME students. On top of that, we have our ‘AME room’ where not only we work hard, but also socialise and share so many different cultures. I should also mention the excellent support we have from our Department. For example, we have individual brief meetings with Dr Ulrich Hansen to check our progress and performance on the course.

This MSc has a dynamic and challenging taught component. Being able to choose our combination of modules allows us to focus on the subjects in which we want to extend our expertise, and to consider our career ambitions. Furthermore, there are clear links to industry, enterprise and many interesting group projects where we develop practical experience.

I am doing my research project in a field I am passionate about: Robotics, specifically about human-robot interaction, supervised by Dr. Ravi Vaidyanathan. In a few words, I am working with a digital face robot that shows facial expressions. One milestone is to analyse human emotional response to affective robots, creating a robotic support for the elderly, including patients with dementia, in developing nations. The individual project is indeed an important research preparation to eventually pursue a PhD. I am also enjoying the activities Imperial promotes besides the course, such as amazing workshops or conferences which broaden knowledge and enhance career opportunities. I also enjoy sports, and I play in the Imperial tennis team.

All in all, it has been a fantastic experience so far. I am definitely expanding my knowledge and passion for Engineering with this MSc!

"This MSc has a dynamic and challenging taught component. Being able to choose our combination of modules allows us to focus on the subjects in which we want to extend our expertise"