Student Profiles
I decided to study a PhD because I felt I needed to specialise; I think a PhD is the best way to do this. My first degree gave me the background knowledge - what materials science is and how to solve different problems – but the PhD goes further. It is not only teaching you what to do but also building your confidence and equipping you with the skills to manage greater projects. It gives you special skills that one can only develop by working independently on a long-term project.
PhD student Lisa Jayne King joined National Soil Resources Institute (NSRI) in December 2007 to undertake a PhD in grassland soils research. Lisa demonstrates how returning to education has rekindled her passion for environmental issues and given her a new found ambition for a future career in the environment.
Lisa, less conventionally than others, started on an academic path slightly later in life. Having left school before completing her A-Levels, she pursued a number of jobs with no real career opportunities. Having raised her family to school age, Lisa began to reassess what she wanted out of life. With a passion for environmental issues reaching as far back as her childhood, Lisa realised that a career in teaching would enable her to pass on her own enthusiasm.
Lisa took up her PhD studentship, one of a cluster of four PhDs* supported by Teagasc Walsh Fellowships, at Cranfield University. The PhD is a partnership between NSRI and Teagasc, the Irish Agriculture and Food Development Authority based at Johnstown Castle, Wexford. The four PhDs in Grassland Soil Research are focused on developing a mechanistic understanding of ways to manage organic matter in pastures in order to optimise nutrient cycling and minimise environmental impact. Lisa’s project focuses specifically on the manipulation of plant diversity within grassland buffer margins to enhance soil biodiversity and explore the impact this has on phosphorus capture and mitigation.
Lisa would encourage anyone to have a go at returning to education as she has. As she highlights:
"It is not about being clever, but about channelling a passion”
The Cranfield Experience - Kranti K. Lal Kummari graduated in 2008 with a PhD in Advanced Materials
If you are considering a research project, please contact us today with an indication of your area of interest.
Alternatively call us to discuss research study opportunities.
School of Applied Sciences
T: +44 (0)1234 754086
E: appliedsciences@cranfield.ac.uk
