Hannah Woodward, MSc Environmental Modelling

She tells us about how her desire to explore environmental and climate science led to her studies looking at climate system dynamics and modelling approaches.

Why were you interested in studying an MSc in Environmental Modelling?

“I wanted to return to academia in order to explore the area of environmental and climate science, and in particular find a new direction in which to apply and develop my programming expertise.”

What was it that encouraged you to choose UCL?

“UCL was one of the few institutions in the UK to offer a course that taught about the dynamics, complexity, and components of the climate system across different scales, as well as the various approaches at modelling it. 

“The course itself is also very flexible, with the opportunity to specialise in a variety of modules which I found valuable as someone with a knowledge of climate on the level of popular science.”

What were the most interesting or engaging things you learned on the course?

“It’s hard to put into words! The course offers so much breadth in the content offered, but a personal highlight was an exploration into the models used to simulate Earth’s climate across the past, present, and future. 

“This helped to demonstrate the complexity, uncertainty, but also sensitivity of the climate system which I found fascinating. 

“I also really enjoyed the variety in assignments, such as a podcast and a video tutorial which were fun to make and helped to break up the more writing-focused projects whilst presenting an opportunity to pick up additional skills.”

What have you been doing since graduating and how has your MSc helped?

“Since graduating, I have joined the London NERC DTP as a PhD researcher, with hopes to continue down the path of research afterwards. 

“Although my research area is now focused upon the atmospheres of other planets, I’ve found so many of the skills I’ve learned in the MSc incredibly valuable within my PhD so far, from the analysis of model output data to the critical thinking essential for both reading and writing scientific literature.”

Would you recommend studying Environmental Modelling in the Department and why?

“Definitely! You are given the opportunity to learn so much and really tailor the degree to your own interests whether in science or policy, computational or lab-based, whilst also developing some of the key skills such as reading, writing, and programming relevant and transferable across a multitude of disciplines and career paths.”

More Information

Interested in following in Hannah’s footsteps? Find out more about our MSc Environmental Modelling course and see our other degrees in the Study section.