Harper Adams seeks to prepare its students for the future; with industry accredited degrees and thought leading research informing what students learn, they enter the working world ready to take on the challenges presented to them. Alongside up to date knowledge, students also get to explore practical elements of their learning. This real world insight gives students the Harper advantage, as Kyle Reed discovered.
Upon finishing his A-Levels, Kyle wasn’t sure what path to follow. He said: “Engineering has always interested me and I took related subjects at school and college. But a lot of universities offered very theory based engineering courses and I wanted to understand what it would be like to work in that industry before committing to that line of studies.
“The best thing I thought to do was to speak to people that have had the experience. Talking to engineering employers and engineering graduates, I discovered that the majority of students who had graduated with an engineering degree had to participate in a graduate entry programme, teaching them practical and interdisciplinary skills.
“Instead, I was looking for a degree that combined both practical and theoretical learning.”
In his search for the right degree for him, Kyle visited Harper Adams on an Open Day. It was then that he found a degree pathway that met his needs.
Kyle commented: “It was quite clear how different the degree was to any of the others I had looked into. You could tell that the department had taken time to sit down with employers and accrediting bodies to write the course programme, to ensure it provided the sector with industry ready engineers, and that graduates did not need this additional graduate entry programme.”
Now Kyle is studying MEng Agricultural Engineering in his third year, describing his course as: “Engaging, practical, and real-world focused; you can easily see solutions and your career end goal through your learnings and you will always have the support to achieve them.”
While Kyle acknowledged the step up in academic challenge from his A-Levels, he felt encouraged through his studies. He shared that, while he hadn’t taken A-Level Maths, the support from engineering academic staff and the Academic Student Support team were a reassuring presence that helped him to achieve his goals without any setbacks.
Highlights of Kyle’s studies have included the instances where he has been challenged the most. He referred to his Engineering Design project from his second year, that encouraged the development of interpersonal skills that aid working scenarios. Kyle shared: “Learning to host meetings, work within a diverse team and present in front of industry professionals has been really beneficial.”
Kyle is equally enthusiastic about learning about engineering’s links to agriculture on a global scale.
Looking to the future, Kyle is keen to pursue a career in lean manufacturing and developing industry efficiency. He is equally interested in gaining farming experience and applying efficiency skills to the agricultural sector, building an arable business using autonomous technology.
To find out more about our engineering programmes, please click here.
We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue without changing your settings, we'll assume that you are happy to receive all cookies on the website. However, you can change your cookie settings at any time.