Jesús

Why did you choose this master’s programme at KTH?

When I finished my bachelor’s degree, I was faced with the decision of whether I should continue my studies in Mathematics and Computer Science, or explore something new. I have always been very passionate about Transportation, but at the time of the application, I was not really sure I would get accepted into the programme since I was coming from a slightly different field. But I thought that it was worth it to give it a try, and in the end, I got accepted! Once I received the admission letter, I immediately felt that Stockholm and KTH were the place where I should go, and so far, I don’t regret my decision at all!

What are the best aspects of your programme?

For me, the best part of the programme is the freedom you have to decide your own study path. First, the programme includes courses in many areas within Transportation and Geoinformation Technology instead of just offering one or two. You can study courses from Traffic Engineering, Railways, Transport Modeling, GIS, Geoinformatics and much more! Second, there is only 1 mandatory course while the rest are elective. Additionally, there is not a formal choice of specialization. For instance, you may start taking courses from one field and then, at a later point of the programme, you may have new interests so you can take courses from the other field as well.

How do studies at KTH differ from your previous studies?

One major difference from KTH compared to my previous university is that here we have much more contact with the industry during our studies. We have many interesting guest lectures, with speakers coming from relevant Swedish companies in the field, such as Trafikverket or SL, and many courses include study visits as well. There are also a lot of career fairs, not only general for the whole university, but specific to our studies. For example, there is Lava, which focuses on studies within the School of Architecture and the Built Environment, or there is the Railway Evening. This is a very cool event where all the relevant actors in the Swedish railway industry gather at KTH. It also provides a great opportunity for networking and having more personal conversations with potential employers.

How is student life in Stockholm?

Before arriving in Stockholm, I was worried that going out as a student would be very expensive compared to my home country. While this may be the case for parties or events outside the university, I was pleasantly surprised by how well-organised Sweden’s student community is. There are so many student events in KTH and around Stockholm, with very affordable prices for us. So, in the end, I can enjoy going out just like I did in Spain, but I do it much more frequently through university events, which didn't exist at all at my previous university.

Something cool to know is that every field of study, for example, Civil Engineering or Computer Science, constitutes a Chapter. Each Chapter has a hall, a large room where they organise weekly pubs, parties and other events. An interesting twist is that you can get what is called an ovve, a student overall, and then you can collect patches in these events, which you sew onto your ovve afterwards. Collecting them is so much fun and they’re a nice memento of your time at KTH!

What do you want to do after graduating?

My main goal would be to find a job where I can combine my knowledge in Mathematics and Computer Science with Transportation. For instance, I would be very interested in exploring the fields of Traffic Simulation or Optimisation applied to Public Transport. Still, I have one year left before I have to make a decision, so I want to keep being curious and discovering other areas that I can enjoy. Furthermore, I have the pleasure of being part of the Scania Student Intro programme, which allows me to do a Summer Internship and to write my Master Thesis in Scania. I hope this experience will help me in the future as I will get to know the company and the industry better.