Andrea Putri Subroto

Why did you choose the University of Leeds?

I chose University of Leeds because it offers a programme specifically for plant biotechnology (Msc Plant Science and Biotechnology) which I think is very suitable for me. I am also interested in Leeds city which is very student friendly, has a big population of students and a rather low living cost. University of Leeds also located in United Kingdom which is an English-speaking country and I want to improve my English language.

Why did you chose to come to Leeds and what do you enjoy about your course?

My undergraduate study was Biotechnology and currently I am working at an agricultural company in Indonesia. I work as a research officer in its Biotechnology and Plant Production Division. Therefore, continuing my study in plant biotechnology field is critical and luckily, I found Plant Science and Biotechnology programme in University of Leeds which has modules that are very correlated with my research. So, I am sure I can apply my knowledge from my master study in my future research when I return to Indonesia.

I have been living in Leeds for 1 month, and I already make a lot of friends at my class. The modules are perfectly structured. So instead of just learning and memorizing information, we also learn important skills which can be useful when we become a researcher after we graduate. Those skills include how to plan a research, how to make a grant proposal, how to write critique/review paper, how to deliver presentation, and many more.

The class is also very interactive, so instead of spending few hours of lecture listening to the lecturer teach, we have a small group discussion, a group presentation, a laboratory session and tutorials.

How Are there any significant differences between studying in Leeds and Indonesia?

In Indonesia, I also have lectures, and a lot of projects like presentations and practical. But what I feel different is that the class in Leeds is more interactive. So, the class that I attend always feels fun. We are trained to think critically and not just accepting information and assume it was all correct. Therefore, in every class we need to be focus. The students here in Leeds also highly initiative without any force. If we are not active enough, we will miss a lot of information. And without realising it, we learn to become independent during our study.

How do you feel the International Community has helped you settle in to Leeds?

The international community is doing a wonderful job by hosting various events for us to find new friends from all around the world and share our culture. Since we are all far away from our home country, having friends that understand our feeling is very comforting and having fun with them through the events, help me reduce feelings of home sick.