Sebastian

Name: Sebastian

Country: Germany
WSS course studied: An Introduction to Artificial Intelligence – A Practical Approach
Current status: Dual Student at Volkswagen Financial Services AG in Business Informatics B. Sc.
(In Germany, there is a system called Dual Studies where work and university a synchronized with each other. We take turns studying and working each quarter of a year)

What encouraged you to choose to join the Warwick Summer School?

I was encouraged by the possibility to study a highly modern subject abroad. Learning something that is connected to my degree and doing so in a foreign country is an experience that I felt I had to take.

As you transitioned from the Warwick Summer School back to your studies or work, how did the skills and knowledge you gained during the three weeks help you?

Academic wise, my benefit was that at the next semester, we had a similar subject at university. Therefore, I was able to gain a more rounded insight into this subject, because the focus differed slightly between Warwick Summer School and my university. Also, since I work at an international company, for me, it was a great experience to talk to people from so many different cultures.

Group of students in front of a road sign that says 'University Road'

Group of students posing in the London Eye with London in the background

Did you build any new friendships/ connections during your time on the summer school?

Absolutely, because of all the time spent together, especially after the lectures and at the weekends, a small group of us became friends. In the beginning of 2024, we managed to have a small reunion despite the distance between our homes.

What was your highlight of taking part in Warwick Summer School?

In my course, we had a task to program a bot which competes in an auction game against the bots of other participants. This small competition was lots of fun and the lecturer prepared us really well for this task.

Warwick Summer School offered a lot of social activities which was great. For me personally, one of the highlights was definitely the trip to London, because it was my first time being there. I really enjoyed the dinners as well, especially the karaoke dinner, where we heard songs from all over the world.

What advice would you give to future students participating in the Warwick Summer School to get the most out of the programme?

First of all, enjoy your time there! Three weeks are a short period.

Don´t fear the exams in the end, your lecturers will prepare you for it and if you listened in the lectures and spend some time repeating the content you´ll be fine.

Try to get to know as many people as possible. For me, this was one of the best parts overall. You probably won´t have the opportunity to easily talk to so many people from so many places around the world at one place in the next time.