I can't imagine studying for my PhD anywhere other than SAMBa; I needed to learn mathematical tools that I didn't even know existed when I arrived, and SAMBa was the perfect environment, filled with clever, supportive people, in which to do just that.
Before joining SAMBa I was an undergraduate in mathematics at the University of Bath
My research concerned waves moving in random materials – I studied the differential equation governing these waves, proved properties of its solution, and developed and analysed a new methods for accelerating the numerical solution of this equation.
I also attended some great international conferences, in the USA, Chile, and Austria! Back at SAMBa I helped organise our student-led symposium, and was part of team that organised a national postgraduate conference with over 100 attendees!
After completing my PhD, I changed direction, and I’m training at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford, to be a Church of England minister.
As a theology student, I need to think clearly about complex topics – something I had lots of training for in SAMBa! And had lots of opportunities to give talks about my research, which have honed my skills in presenting those complex topics to other people.
I can’t imagine studying for my PhD anywhere other than SAMBa; I needed to learn mathematical tools that I didn’t even know existed when I arrived, and SAMBa was the perfect environment, filled with clever, supportive people, in which to do just that.
(My supervisors) encouraged me to take my own research direction, guided by my interests, and to be involved in the wider community, presenting at and attending a wide range of national and international conferences
I was able to use the SAMBa training in statistics, to support training workshops in Mexico and in fact took a break from my PhD to take on a statistics teaching assistant role.
I joined thinking I wanted to do one type of PhD but ended up doing a completely different one due to the flexibility that was provided in finding/forming a PhD during the masters year
You get a lot of freedom to choose your research area...and there is a wide range of research areas within the department from which to choose
The ITTs were invaluable in providing experience in collaborating effectively with others on large projects, understanding and synthesising new information quickly, and liasing with academic leads and commercial partners
I enjoyed the big portfolio of opportunities I was given, which I believe is an essential property of SAMBa and something which truly makes the programme worth it
Being part of SAMBa is like being part of a little community: everyone is super supportive and there is always someone to talk to if you need it (usually with cake!).
My experience in SAMBa shaped me as a versatile researcher with the ability to use maths to make an impact.
SAMBa exposes students to a wide range of cutting edge statistical and mathematical research that will be useful to them in their PhD and later career
The experience and the skill set acquired during my years in SAMBa helped me develop my academic career in a growing inter and trans disciplinary world.
