I grew up in Český Brod, a small town not far away from Prague. I obtained my secondary education at Gymnázium U Libeňského Zámku, my further journey was, however, influenced much more by my friends who had decided to go abroad for their studies. Their testimonies from prestigious universities in the USA and the Netherlands were quite in contrast with my own experiences of education. Most importantly, they showed me it is possible to get accepted to such places from an ordinary Czech secondary school (this way of thinking seems odd when I look back, but possibilities of studying abroad are often under-estimated in our schools). This impulse was decisive for me. I enrolled in an extracurricular course in chemistry at the Scientists‘ Station in Prague, I started to prepare for language examinations and spent time looking up information and asking about universities. Conditional acceptance to The University of Edinburgh and successful Maturita exam followed, so I was free to pursue my goal.
I have now passed the first year, which I think was successful. University style of teaching is just right for me, even the exams went as I wanted to. Moreover, I became a part of Edinburgh University Young Scientific Researchers Society, which provides undergraduate students with the opportunity to plan research projects and acquire funding for them. One such project – assessment of meat quality in Scotland – our group has finished, another one is being planned. This kind of independent work, where students are facing problems on their own, has been a great experience for me, which the University’s lab sessions could hardly facilitate.
Thanks to the Scottish tradition of less specialised university education, I was able to choose an elective subject in the first year. That subject was physics, which (unlike its secondary school version) captivated me so much, that I decided to transfer into Chemical Physics degree programme. It consists of courses in chemistry, physics and mathematics and thus opens the way to a wide range of further specialisations. I firmly believe this last-minute change was a step in the right direction and I am looking forward to my next year in Edinburgh.
Secondary
Gymnázium, Praha 8, U Libeňského zámku 1, graduated in 2013
University
The University of Edinburgh, UK, started in 2013
Take full advantage of studying at The University of Edinburgh and continue to doctoral study.
Playing the piano, Literature, Travelling
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