A summer to remember

Arriving at CERN I was nervous and excited I had no idea what to expect. My main reason for applying to CERN was to meet students from all over the world who were just as excited to be here as i was. So I was delighted to find within my first week I had already met too many students to remember everyones name or even where they were from. The students I met working here also surprised me as they were so social, always wanting to meet up go for drinks or do lots of activities that Geneva has to offer. To also be around so many bright minds studying the same subjects as you made everyone all the more interesting to talk to. To also see how they all work as well in comparison to students from back home made it clear that students from almost everywhere else work much harder than English students. Coming I have met so many great people I really want to keep in contact with and hopefully see again in the future.

The work side was where I was most anxious and also most unsure of what to expect. I was nervous I would not have enough experience in the field to produce the work they were expecting but my supervisor was quick to reassure me that I was not only hear to produce work but also to learn. The first week and half in fact I was just learning how to use the software I needed for my project also the physics i needed to understand but all of this was explained very well by my supervisor who was very patient with me. The main aspect of the work I would say is to get a taste of what being a particle physics research is like. I was completely shocked and also delighted at what the work life was like, so interesting and also not stressful work comes at your own pace. Its also hard to believe I was getting paid to do the work I was doing, something I actually enjoyed and wanted to do is the best job there is.

I truly do feel very lucky to be here when so many applied and so many could not come. To be part of such a large collaboration of academics in such exciting environment has made me want to definitely come back. It has been the best summer I have had and I would say it was not down to the work but rather the people, they really made it a summer to remember.