Really amazing University of New South Wales - UNSW
- ObulesuIndia
- University of New South Wales - UNSW, Australia
- Post Graduate Research in Combustion Dynamics modeling
- Postgraduate
- 2010
Being the only member of my family to have received a higher education, I never dreamed that one day I would be studying for a PhD at one of the world's pre-eminent universities in my field - let alone that my work would be instrumental in containing global warming. I grew up in the poor village of Allagadda, near Kurnool in Andhra Pradesh. With various private donations and government sponsorship, I was able to study for an undergraduate degree in mechanical engineering in my home state before moving to Madras to complete Masters at the Indian Institute of Technology. After working for two years at General Electric in Bangalore, I knew it was time to advance my study overseas, to gain exposure to the most advanced technology and to widen my connections with the international research community. I was drawn to the University of New South Wales (UNSW), Sydney, because of the work of Dr Evatt Hawkes, a Senior Lecturer in the School of Photovoltaic and Renewable Energy Engineering. Dr Hawkes is a world authority on combustion dynamics and previously worked for six years at the prestigious Sandia National Laboratory in California. My parents are illiterate and do not know what I am doing here. They never knew I came top, I always used to just tell them I passed. They never opposed me in my study. But I never dreamed of this - that I would one day study in one of the top institutes in the world.
I am studying with the help of a University International Postgraduate Award (UIPA). The Australian Government is sponsoring Indian engineers to study with world class experts in renewable energy at UNSW as part of the Government's commitment to the Asia-Pacific Partnership on Clean Development and Climate, of which India is a leading member.
I am studying combustion and propulsion - understanding the fundamental processes within combustion engines. As 90 per cent of the world's transport relies on engines such as these, my work has the potential to drastically reduce emissions, pollution and fuel consumption. After I complete my PhD, I hope to continue my work with a faculty position in a world-class laboratory - hopefully at UNSW - before finally returning to India to establish my own research.
I arrived in Sydney three months ago [April] and was surprised at the relatively high cost of living in Australia compared to India, especially the cost of accommodation and transport. However my experience has been overwhelmingly positive. On my first day I was greeted personally by Dr Hawkes, who accompanied me to the UNSW Graduate Research School and spent three hours helping me fill in the necessary paperwork. It was a wonderful experience. I have found other university officials equally responsive, Australian people polite and friendly, and the environment safe both on campus and in the city beyond. Before they come, people need to have some idea about cost of living and an estimation of the cost of study. If they can afford it, it is a nice culture, the infrastructure and laboratories and research are really amazing. They can get a very good education here.
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Located in New South Wales.
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Ranking for this institution
- SHJT: 151-200
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