Liliya Yankova

There were numerous reasons why I chose the University of Surrey for my degree. Surrey ranked highly for academics and overall student satisfaction, and the BSc Computer Science offered a wide variety of modules which gave me the chance to explore areas of computer science that were new to me.

The proximity of Guildford to London was a definite advantage because I’m from Bulgaria and knew I’d want to travel back home on a regular basis. I fell in love with Surrey’s campus from images online, but nothing compares to seeing it first-hand. The moment I set foot here, felt the atmosphere and met some of my course mates, I knew I had made the right decision.

The projects I’ve worked on during my course have certainly all been challenging, but I’ve also enjoyed them. There is always a feeling of pride and happiness once a project is finished, and the effort feels worthwhile. Many of the modules I’ve chosen involve working with Linux-based software, and the sheer access you get at Surrey to advanced computer labs and facilities has saved me so many headaches.

I chose to do a Professional Training placement year at Royal Surrey County Hospital, Guildford, where I was based in the Scientific Computing Department. As a Trainee Computer Scientist, my day-to-day work involved implementing and maintaining different pieces of software for the various departments within the hospital, which included writing and debugging code, and writing clear and precise documentation.

On placement I honed my time management skills, managing two projects simultaneously, and got the chance to present some of my projects to people from various departments which was stressful but went perfectly.

"My greatest professional achievement was probably my first project when – despite everything being new to me, from the people to the style of code – I managed to find an efficient solution, which involved implementing some complex functionalities."

There are many great things about life at Surrey but if I had to pick one, it would definitely be the student life. There is always something happening like Students’ Union events and society events. I’ve been involved with the Bulgarian Society since my first year which has contributed greatly to my overall experience here. There are also club nights: the fact that we have our own club on campus is just amazing!

My goal has always been to work in a field of computer science after graduation and that is now a reality as I’ve secured a full-time role within Royal Surreys Scientific Computing Department. I’m looking forward to using the foundation Surrey has given me and further develop myself and my skills.  

Discover our courses in computer science, including our BSc (Hons) Computer Science.