New Paths

You may be thinking, Nathalie, are you not a TEFL-qualified business English teacher, and also petsitter? And before that, weren’t you a sommelier, having done a Diplôme in Wine and Management at Le Cordon Bleu in Paris? But didn’t you start a degree Chemistry and Physics at The University of St Andrews when you were 18?

Yes, dear reader, all these things are true. But there’s no time like the present.

It’s time for me to go back to my scientific roots and finally complete my BSc at the ripe old age of 32.

I’m pleased to announce that in October, I will be starting a Combined STEM (Engineering and Mathematics) BSc at the Open University.  I will be studying remotely while continuing to work as a business English teacher. 

The 'why' is simple: I love learning, I love maths, I love science, and most of all, I love their ability to impact the world in a real, tangible way.

I have chosen a path that will take me through Engineering and Mathematics in a comprehensive way. My planned route (subject to change) is as follows:

Year 1 

• Engineering T192 and T193 - maths, design methodologies, formulating solutions; invention, innovation, and how to keep it all safe.

• Mathematics MST124 and MST125 - back to basics then on to proof, differential equations, mechanics and discrete mathematics, all while using computer algebra systems.

  
  

Year 2

• Core Engineering A T271 - materials, statics, electricity generation, the good stuff.

• Mechanical Engineering T229 - the practical fun begins; FEA software use, experimentation on thermodynamics

• Design for Engineers T218 - understanding the design process to translate ideas into useful and required products

• Mathematical Methods MST224 - modelling and application to real-world problems

  
  

Year 3

• Quantum Physics SM380 - fundamental concepts to contemporary applications

• Nanoscale Engineering T366 - manufacturing nanoscale devices, energy harvesting and storage, biosensors, nano-materials etc.

• Structural Integrity T367 - predicting and assessing performance, integrating mechanical engineering, stress analysis, materials behaviour, failure analysis etc.

• Graphs, Games and Designs MST368 - discrete maths and its applications to modelling and real-world problems; also, theoretical tomfoolery, how could I say no?

  
  

All being well and being able to handle the pressure of full-time employment and a full-time degree course, I will finish my 3 years with OU in 2028. You’re all invited to my graduation! (I see on the r/OpenUniversity subreddit that this is not all that funny, as graduation places are in short supply).

I’m most excited about being challenged again.  I enjoy my work as a business English teacher, and it has it’s own challenges, but this is a new level of trying hard things and succeeding.  I’ve told a number of people that I’m doing a degree focusing in engineering and mathematics, and they look at me in confusion and almost disgust. That’s not how I feel at all; I’m going to be Elle Woods, but instead of law, it’s combined STEM, and instead of Boston, it’s Milton Keynes through a computer screen. 

GIF from Legally Blonde (2001)

I’ve got my textbooks, I’ve got my calculator, I've got a tenacity, and I’m ready to begin this degree and see where this new path takes me.