TALES FROM A STUDENT- CATARINA VAUGHAN

I have entered the final year of my bachelor's degree in Aerospace Systems Engineering. The year was full of adventures and new experiences, and I was trying to wrap up my time in Scotland.

This year, I was part of the Glasgow University Women's Rugby Club's committee as the club's Treasurer. This experience allowed me to be part of the club's senior management team and actively support my club's growth. I have been with the club for four years and was so happy to be able to encourage other young female athletes and support them through their rugby careers. Toward the end of our season, the senior team were invited to a Scottish Rugby event to showcase the growth of rugby in Scotland and programs being developed to further support the women and girls play of the sport. Alongside supporting my club, I did

Glasgow University Sports Association Fresher Helping for a second year in a row to support new incoming students to the university with their sports journey. My responsibilities during this week were to help set up the annual Sports Fayre, support all sports taster sessions, encourage trying new sports, advocate for women in sports and provide insight into the benefits of being part of a sports team. I also got employed by the University of Glasgow Sports, my university sports complex, where I can further support people's sports and fitness journeys.

Since my time in Scotland was coming to a close, I took

this opportunity to further explore Scotland, from spending a week exploring the Isle of Skye to driving across the North Coast (NC500 Roadtrip) with friends who were also graduating this year. During my week in Skye, I travelled through the whole island, seeing the Coire Lagan, the Old Man of Storr, Kilt Rock, Staffin Beach, The Quiaraing, Neist Point, The Cuillins, Talisker and Braes Beaches. The week consisted of hikes and wild swims in natural fresh water pools and beaches. I was utterly captivated by this island's nature and local animals and was lucky enough to be there during lambing season and help a lamb that was just a day old! The North Coast 500 was incredibly scenic, and we completed it over five

days. Our trip began in Glasgow and drove straight to Inverness to truly kick off our journey along the northern coast of Scotland, we passed through Ullapool, explored the Knochan Craig National Nature Reserve, drove across the Kylesku Bridge, camped on Durness Beach and swam in the North Sea and explored the Smoo Caves in Durness amongst other things. These trips and other smaller day trips throughout the year have been a nice wrap-up to my

time in Scotland.

In preparation for my aerospace industry career, I secured an internship at Deutsches Zentrum für Luft und Raumfahrt (DLR), the German Aerospace Center. I resided in Braunschweig, Germany, where I took part in acoustic experimental research of a cockpit using the German-Dutch closed-circuit low-speed wind tunnel on campus. I then gained experience in running computational fluid dynamics (CFD) simulations and post-processing wind tunnel data for a high-lift configuration aircraft. While working for DLR, I had the opportunity to explore Braunschweig, Hanover, Gifhorn, Hamburg, Munich, Berlin, Wernigerode and Frankfurt. I had this amazing opportunity to explore a new country in Europe and experience the various major cities from the north to the south while exploring smaller towns in between, attending various events across Germany and indulging in German culture. With me graduating this December, I look forward to my next adventure and the prospects of starting my career in the Aerospace industry!