My Story: Johanna Meier
When I moved to London in September 2019, I never expected that I would be able to divide my graduate studies into two parts: experiences pre- and during a worldwide pandemic.
While studying for a BSc in Economics and Management in Hanover, Germany, I discovered my passion for statistics and programming. To further dive into these topics and get a completely new perspective on academic life, I decided to apply for graduate degrees in data science in the UK. In the end, UCL’s MSc Data Science programme drew me in with its combination of rigorous statistical training offered by the Department of Statistical Science and insights into recent topics in machine learning provided by the Department of Computer Science. Of course, I was also excited to join the truly diverse and international community at UCL, and to enjoy the vibrant city of London.
After a foundation fortnight bringing all students from mathematical and statistical backgrounds to the same page, I attended courses ranging from introductions to data science and machine learning to selected advanced topics in statistics. The module contents did not fall short of my expectations. What I particularly enjoyed, however, was being taught by lecturers who are on the frontier of research in their field, but very approachable and open for discussion at the same time. My cohort turned out to be a group of extremely smart people coming from a broad range of academic backgrounds, with each bringing in different perspectives. The group assignments ended up being especially inspiring for that reason.
To find a balance between studying and relaxation, I also enjoyed playing for the UCL tennis team. For BUCS Wednesdays, we travelled through England and Wales, and the tennis society became something of a home away from home.
While the threat of a COVID-19 pandemic started looming on the horizon by the end of February 2020, it was only by the end of March that we could feel the immediate impact at UCL. Lectures finally had to move online for the last week of term 2 and social gatherings were cancelled altogether. However, both the Statistical Science and Computer Science departments did a great job of making a smooth transition, and quickly prepared online exams as well as other alternative assessments that could be taken from around the world. Clearly, this was a difficult time for everyone, but all kinds of online events organised by fellow students and societies helped us stay connected during lockdown.
After the exam period, the MSc programme culminated in a research project. The disruption caused by the pandemic led to supervision being online rather than face-to-face, but I felt this worked perfectly well. I worked on a project on ‘Scalable inference for generative models using quasi-Monte Carlo’ supervised by Dr François-Xavier Briol, which pushed me far beyond everything I had learnt so far. Working on the MSc project itself would have been an intense and challenging experience at any time, but doing so in the isolation of a lockdown in a foreign country was even more so. However, through great support from my supervisor and my fellow students, with whom I could exchange thoughts and feedback, it also became a very rewarding time.
After completing the MSc project, my supervisor proposed turning the thesis into a paper in a joint effort with another student, Ziang Niu, who was visiting the Statistical Science department as an undergraduate student during that year. As this was the first paper I had worked on, I was going through all stages of a research project for the first time, learning how a collaboration, in which everyone has their specialisations, results in very efficient teamwork.
Writing this paper gave me the opportunity to develop my scientific coding and writing skills further, all of which provided me with a head start for the PhD that I am now pursuing in Hanover, Germany. Here, my work is focused on the intersection of machine learning and time series analysis, and I am still profiting from the great network I was able to build through the Statistical Science department at UCL. Many of my fellow students went into research, both in academia and industry, and we keep in touch, motivating and stimulating each other.
In retrospect, coming to London to pursue the MSc Data Science gave me so much more than a degree – it boosted my quantitative skills and left me with a network of bright and caring people, despite the COVID-19 disruptions.