Thursday 15th September brought a dilemma for Upper Sixth student Orlagh Carroll, with the clash of two important events, the school Gala Dinner in Armagh and the Nuffield Bursary Presentation Evening in Queen’s University, Belfast. However, not to be defeated by such unfortunate scheduling, Orlagh managed to both present her work and receive her award before being whisked away to become a belle of the ball.
Dr. Adele Marshall (QUB), Orlagh Carroll (U6th), Miss Burns
The Nuffield bursary is a scheme which promotes STEM subjects (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) by allowing a student a four to six week project during the summer in their chosen field. Orlagh spent four weeks working on a project with Dr. Adele Marshall in the CENNSOR (Centre for Statistical Science and Operational Research) group of QUB. The aim of her project was to analyse past weather data (as provided by the Armagh Observatory), identify patterns and trends with the ultimate aim of predicting future weather patterns.
Orlagh found the project very interesting and says “I thoroughly enjoyed my time spent up in Queen’s University during the summer as I gained an insight into a job that I would never have before considered entering into and is now a very possible career choice. I have also had the opportunity to speak to lecturers and postgraduate students and gained an insight into what I should expect from doing a mathematics degree.”
At the presentation evening, Orlagh and all other Nuffield placement students had the opportunity to showcase their work for parents, teachers, project managers and Sentinus organisers. It was a very enjoyable evening with a wide range of projects on display.
Well done Orlagh!
