Student profile: Yulia Yancheva

Student experience 13th August 2020

My name is Yulia Yancheva and I am currently a third year MPhys Physics student. I chose to study physics because it allows me to learn more about the world on many scales – from the fundamental particles to the black holes. I decided to go to The University of Manchester because it offers a fantastic social and academic environment which is perfect for students. Manchester is also a very big city – there are many events happening around town all the time and it’s easy for everybody to find something they like.

The best thing about being a physics student is that you learn so much about the world around you! You develop a very logical and sceptical thinking and start questioning all information you read. The most difficult thing about being a physics student is that you often spend hours studying without making any progress – you can spend more than 4 hours debugging a code only to find out you have called the wrong function! In my first year I spent two lab days only to obtain the size of the atom to be few kilometres and start all over again.

However, hard work really does pay off in the end – it’s important to remember that no matter how little progress you think you’re doing, you’re still learning. I’ve really enjoyed doing physics and I’d like to continue my studies after I finish my MPhys degree – I’m interested in doing a PhD in experimental biophysics.

Expectation vs reality…

For me the most surprising thing about uni was how easy it was to find friends. Manchester offers a very diverse environment and it’s very easy for everybody to fit in and feel at home. I wish I knew this when I came into first year! Another thing I wish I knew back then is how important it is to rest and have fun. One is a lot more productive when having breaks and going out doing fun activities – studying all the time is exhausting and doesn’t give very good results. It’s very important to take care of yourself and ask for help if you think you need it.

Physics in the lab

I’m a big fan of experimental physics and I absolutely love lab. This year I spent four weeks investigating the electrical properties of graphene and I found the work very interesting and engaging – it felt like doing real research. Here is a photo of myself doing a task that was required for this experiment – I was handling ammonia and hence the safety goggles and the face mask.

At the University of Manchester, Physics students work in pairs in the lab. We also have lab demonstrators who introduce us to the experiments and help us if we get stuck. However, in third and fourth year, students work mainly with their lab partners without the demonstrators being there all the time. This makes the lab experience unique – there is a lot of brainstorming going on between lab partners and it almost feels like solving a puzzle. Lab is definitely my favourite part from my degree!

graphenelaboratory workphysics