Nuffield Research Placements 2021- Yorkshire and Humber

2021

NUFFIELD RESEARCH
PLACEMENTS
YORKSHIRE AND HUMBER

Managed in Yorkshire and Humber by;



TABLE OF
CONTENTS

Page no. Meet your Regional Coordinator
Introduction
4 Headline figures
5 Nuffield Allumni
6 Host organisations
7 Placements
8 Project Case Study
9-15 Schools
16-49 Key Destinations
50 Student/Supervisor Feedback
51 Student Support
52-55 Celebrating Success
56
57

NUFFIELD RESEARCH PLACEMENTS

MEET YOUR
REGIONAL COORDINATOR

Paula Symonds I am in the very lucky position to be able to
STEM Projects Officer - Nuffield work with amazing students and project
supervisors from across the whole of
Nuffield area: Yorkshire and Humberside. Every day I
Yorkshire and Humberside learn something new about the world of
STEM, which is brilliant.


My role is to enable enthusiastic,
determined students with a genuine
interest in research to participate in a
Nuffield Research Placement with an

expert in their field, helping safeguard the
next generation of STEM researchers and

professionals.



During the application and selection
process, I am the person who will be there
to support students and project supervisors

so that everyone involved can enjoy their
placements and achieve a successful

outcome. I aim to offer bespoke support
and advice, as everyone’s needs are
different.


2021, despite the challenges, was a
fantastic year for Nuffield Research

Placements in Yorkshire and Humberside.
Thanks to the generosity of my project
supervisors, students were still able to

access a fantastic range of experiences,
developing new skills and a clearer

understanding of STEM research and
careers.



4 NUFFIELD RESEARCH PLACEMENTS

INTRODUCTION

What is a Nuffield Research Placement?

Nuffield Research Placements (NRPs) are engaging, real-life research or
development projects, where talented year 12 (or equivalent) students
are placed at the heart of a UK host organisation.

They are a fantastic opportunity for students to apply skills and
knowledge learned at school while providing a meaningful contribution to
the work of researchers and industry professionals.

A NRP is an invaluable This is a very
opportunity to gain an worthwhile scheme
insight into what it's like
conducting research and has enabled
many students to
and allows you to transition successfully
develop transferable to higher education.
skills that will make your


university and CV 2021 NRP Project
application stand out!
Supervisor


2021 NRP student

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OVERALL HEADLINE FIGURES

National

Student applications from 1053 schools
and colleges

After selection process completed, 1001
students on placement

19% Social Science 81% STEM
placements placements

Yorkshire and Humber

Student applications from 52 schools and
colleges across Yorkshire and
Humberside

After selection process completed, 85
students on placement across Yorkshire
and Humber.

43% Social Science 57% STEM
placements placements

6 NUFFIELD RESEARCH PLACEMENTS

NUFFIELD ALUMNI

Name: Murtada Dafalia I took away a lot of skills from the experience, some

transferable skills, as well as a lot of technical skills.

NRP year: 2018

I learnt how to research information. I had an
A-levels: Maths, Further Maths, Physics, organised plan for what information I needed to know
Chemistry and an EPQ at Notre Dame so I could cover all the topics in my project. At the
Catholic Sixth Form College with last year same time, I needed to keep track of the books and
being at Elliot Hudson College. websites I was using, so I could reference them in my
project. This skill really helped and made me much
Current study: Second year of
Mechanical Engineering at the University more confident when I started university.
of Leeds.


Placement: How aerodynamic features of I also learnt about aerodynamics, which is a part of my
the car affect its performance in racing. degree course and has undoubtedly helped me when it

Project supervisor: Professor Harvey has come up in lectures. Even if you decide not to go
Thompson from the University of Leeds. onto study what you have researched for your

placement, it’s still important to mention it in your
personal statement if you are applying to university or

an apprenticeship application. The experience of a
doing research placement will make you standout..



I can’t recommend the Nuffield Research Placement
highly enough. As well as the skills I developed, I felt

more confident going into Year 13 as I had a better
idea of what I wanted to do in the future.





7 NUFFIELD RESEARCH PLACEMENTS

HOST ORGANISATIONS

We work with a wide range of employers, including universities and
research institutes, local government and public sector agencies, tech
and pharmaceutical companies, think tanks and market research
agencies. Some of these organisations employ thousands of people, and
some have a single-figure headcount. What they all have in common
is a clearly identifiable research and development project, and a
commitment to sharing their passion for their business with young people
from their local area.

Number of placements per provider:
Balfour Beatty- 2
City of York Council - 1
Sheffield Hallam University - 3
SYREC - 6
The University of Sheffield - 33
University of Bradford - 6
University of Leeds - 22
York St John University - 4
York University - 13

Placements offered
from nine providers

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PLACEMENTS

Departments at Sheffield Hallam University:
Physics

School of Electronic and Electrical Engineering
9 NUFFIELD RESEARCH PLACEMENTS

PLACEMENTS

Departments at The University of Sheffield:
Animal and Plant Sciences
Chemistry
Electronic and Electrical Engineering
Geography
Grantham Centre for Sustainable Futures
Infection Immunity and Cardiovascular Disease
Materials Science and Engineering
Psychology
Q-Step, Sheffield Methods Institute
School of Clinical Dentistry
School of Health and Related Research (ScHARR) - Public Health

School of Electronic and Electrical Engineering

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PLACEMENTS

Departments at University of Bradford:
Computer Science - Faculty of Engineering and Informatics
Institute of Cancer Therapeutics

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PLACEMENTS

Departments at University of Leeds:
Business Studies/Psychology
Economics
Food Science and Nutrition
Institute of Robotics, Autonomous Systems, and Sensing; School of
Electronic and Electrical Engineering
Leeds Institute for Teaching Excellence (LITE)
Leeds University Business School
LICAMM

UniQveSrstietypof Leeds
School of Dentistry
School of Education
School of Electronic and Electrical Engineering
School of Linguistics and Phonetics
School of Mechanical Engineering
Sociology

School of Electronic and Electrical Engineering

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PLACEMENTS

Departments at University of York:
Biology
Physics
Psychology
Science, Technology & Health
York Law School

School of Electronic and Electrical Engineering

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PLACEMENTS

Departments at York St John University:
Biomedical

School of Electronic and Electrical Engineering
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PLACEMENTS

Other host organisations:

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PROJECT CASE STUDY

DDeApDartment: Smart Transport

PROJECT SUPERVISORS:

Stuart Andrews, Smart Transport Project Manager

STUDENT:

Thomas Hicks, Hall Cross Academy

PROJECT TITLE:

On-street charging feasibility.

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"The chance to work in a professional environment with a project supervisor and
complete tasks."

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU LEARN ON PLACEMENT?

"How to write a report."

PROJECT SUPERVISOR FEEDBACK:

"Thomas dived straight into a new subject with refreshing levels of confidence and
enthusiasm. It's really rewarding to witness the leaps in understanding between
sessions."

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PROJECT CASE STUDY

Department: Physics

PROJECT SUPERVISORS:

Dr Sergiu Ruta, Postdoctoral Research Associates

STUDENT:

Ashwini Gopal, Bingley Grammar School

PROJECT TITLE:

Understanding magnetic hyperthermia using advanced models of magnetic
nanoparticles.

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"I enjoyed being involved in important and relevant research into cancer treatment,
and learning more about complex new topics in physics."

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"I've learnt a lot more about the world of acdemia and research, and how to apply
myself to understand challenging concepts."

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PROJECT CASE STUDY

Department: SYREC - Schools’ Team for
Health and Social Care Careers

PROJECT SUPERVISORS:

Hayley Hartley and Everild Hindley, SYREC - Schools’ Team for Health and Social
Care Careers

STUDENTS:

Year 13 student, Notre Dame Catholic Sixth Form College; Cerys Christlo, Thomas
Rotherham College; Francesca Jones, Barnsley College; Formelle Omar, St Mary's
College, Voluntary Catholic Academy; Silvia Sugar, Sheffield Park Academy; Year 13
student, King Ecgbert School

PROJECT TITLE:

Scoping the ethnicity of Key Stage 3 school children in South Yorkshire and North
Nottinghamshire: to inform strategies for attracting young people into Health and
Social Care careers.

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"Gaining valuable skills that I can use in university." Cerys Christlo from Thomas
Rotherham College

"I really enjoyed the placement." Silvia Sugar from Sheffield Park Academy

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNT ON PLACEMENT?

"How science looks as a job and the endless jobs involved within the sector."
Francesca Jones from Barnsley College

"The shortage of ethnicities in the NHS." Year 13 student from King Ecgbert School

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PROJECT SUPERVISOR FEEDBACK

"I particularly enjoyed the level of engagement with the students, being able to build
rapport over the two weeks meant that the students would interact with us and we
were able to get to know them a little better and watch them succeed. Each student
was so individual but they worked together as a team really well. We were very
impressed with their abilities, professionalism and output."

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PROJECT CASE STUDY

Department: Institute of Cancer Therapeutics

PROJECT SUPERVISORS:

Lecturer in Chemical Biology

STUDENTS:

Fred-Ferdinand Mouangassa, Sheffield Park Academy; Sara Haseen, Beckfoot
School; Year 13 student, Greenhead College; Year 13 student, Dixons Free Sixth
Form

PROJECT TITLE:

Cancer Research.

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"Learning so many new things about Cancer Research." Sara Haseen, Beckfoot
School

"I enjoyed my research placement. I specifically enjoyed learning about cancer stem
cells and the development of prodrugs. I enjoyed completing the pre-module content,
especially the ones which involved Excel. I found them interesting and fun." Fred
Ferdinand from Sheffield Park Academy

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNT ON PLACEMENT?

"I gained a valuable insight into how research is conducted in university and how
PhDs also work. I also learnt how to write a report and improved my understanding of
scientific articles and researching." Year 13 student from Dixons Free Sixth Form

20 NUFFIELD RESEARCH PLACEMENTS

PROJECT CASE STUDY

Department: Computer Science - Faculty of
Engineering and Informatics

PROJECT SUPERVISORS:

Professor Daniel Neagu, AI Research (AIRe) Group Leader

STUDENTS:

Dylan Parker, Aston Academy; Luke Shaw, New College Pontefract

PROJECT TITLE:

Machine/|Deep Learning for Big Data Analytics Applied to Engineering.

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"Working with software which I had never used before (i.e Unity 3D Engine)." Luke
Shaw from New College Pontefract

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNT ON PLACEMENT?

"How to write a paper, how to read and understand other people's papers, how to
collaboratively work on a paper, how to use Unity 3D engine, how to code in C#
language, how machine learning works, how we can statistically analyse large data
sets to extract useful information." Luke Shaw from New College Pontefract

PROJECT SUPERVISOR FEEDBACK:

"I particularly enjoyed the multidisciplinarity and engagement opportunities to promote
science and technology subjects. Young generations are eager to learn and
understand science, technology and visibility."

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PROJECT CASE STUDY

Department: Materials Science and Engineering

PROJECT SUPERVISOR:

Lead - Sharon Brown, Senior Programme Manager, EPSRC & SFI Centre for
Doctoral Training (CDT) in Advanced Metallic Systems

Ashley Scarlett, EngD student; Frances Livera, PhD student; Lucy Farquhar, PhD
student; Huda Salam AI-Jurani, PhD student; Joshua Collins, PhD student

STUDENTS:

Ali Al-Qadi, Tapton School; Zeest Ayesha, Silverdale School; Gemma Kerry,
Scarborough Sixth Form College

PROJECT TITLE:

Exploring metal properties through computer modelling.

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"Meeting new people and doing something new that you don't usually do in school.
Also testing out a new career path that I never considered thinking about before, for
example, Materials Science and Engineering." Ali Al-Qadi from Tapton School

"Giving presentation and getting feedback." Zeest Ayesha from Silverdale School

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNT ON PLACEMENT?

"Through my placement I was given the opportunity to develop my confidence, as well
as specialist material science skills." Gemma Kerry from Scarborough Sixth Form
College

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PROJECT SUPERVISOR FEEDBACK

"It was fantastic to mentor a student who was so enthusiastic about STEM and know I
was continuing to inspire them to stay in research."
"Engaged students from a mix of backgrounds - accessibility increased due to
working from home too."

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PROJECT CASE STUDY

Department: Animal and Plant Sciences

PROJECT SUPERVISOR:

Dr Nicola Hemmings, Royal Society; Dorothy Hodgkin, Research Fellow/Senior
Fellow of the Higher Education Academy

STUDENTS:

Year 13 student, Feversham Academy; Iqra Ibrahim, Dixons Free Sixth Form; Girisha
Suryavanshi, Tapton School

PROJECT TITLE:

How does nest attentiveness vary within and between birds and does this affect their
breeding success?

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"It allowed for a deeper insight into topics which were intriguing and allowed an
informative interaction." Iqra Ibraham from Dixons Free Sixth Form
"The teamwork aspect." Girisha Suryavanshi from Tapton School

PROJECT SUPERVISOR FEEDBACK:

"It was great to discuss ideas with the Nuffield students, and to give my PhD student
the opportunity to work with them as well."

24 NUFFIELD RESEARCH PLACEMENTS

PROJECT CASE STUDY

Department: Chemistry

PROJECT SUPERVISOR:

Stephen O Aderinto, Doctoral Researcher

STUDENT:

Jacob Braithwaite, Heckmondwike Grammar School

PROJECT TITLE:

Biophysical studies on the interaction of a novel series of isostructural iridium(III)
polypyridyl complexes with DNA and other biomolecules.

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"I enjoyed drawing conclusions from the data that was provided and learning about
the various methods that were used in order to gather the data."

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNT ON PLACEMENT?

"I am currently interested in doing an Masters of Research (MRes) as part of an
intercalated degree whilst at university. I believe that the skills I have picked up, i.e.
research, being able to write a report, studying scientific documents and data, will
allow me to have the skills and experience necessary."

25 NUFFIELD RESEARCH PLACEMENTS

PROJECT CASE STUDY

Department: Electronic and Electrical Engineerimg

PROJECT SUPERVISOR:

Dr Stephen Henthorn, Academic Fellow in Communications

STUDENTS:

Abigail Macnay, Abbey Grange Church of England Academy; Spencer Pickering
St Wilfrid's Catholic High School & Sixth Form College: A Voluntary Academy

PROJECT TITLE:

Developing energy efficient transmitters for 5G and 6G mobile communications.

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"I enjoyed pushing myself out of my comfort zone. I'm not the most technologically
savvy person, so to be using these state of the art computer programs was definitely
a challenge for me. However, the challenging nature of the project was what kept me
going." Spencer Pickering from St Wilfrid's Catholic High School & Sixth Form
College: A Voluntary Academy

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNT ON PLACEMENT?

"I've learnt various new skills including how to communicate in written and verbal
formats, how to write scientific reports, and genuinely how to conduct fair and rigorous
academic style research" Abigail Macnay from Abbey Grange Church of England
Academy

PROJECT SUPERVISOR FEEDBACK:

"The students were a delight to work with, coming up with creative solutions, being
very driven and able to work well independently."

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PROJECT CASE STUDY

Department: Infection Immunity and Cardiovascular Disease

PROJECT SUPERVISOR:

Mahrukh Shameem, MRC DiMeN PhD Student

STUDENT:

Year 13 student, Greenhead College

PROJECT TITLE:

Literature Review on the effects of cytokines in the lung.

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"Gaining experience in a possible future career and learning from experts."

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNT ON PLACEMENT?

"How to read research papers and understanding the practical application of different
techniques used in experiments."

PROJECT SUPERVISOR FEEDBACK:

"I particularly enjoyed interacting with students and helping them develop their skills."

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PROJECT CASE STUDY

Department: Psychology

PROJECT SUPERVISOR:

Dr Fuschia Sirois, Reader in Social and Health Psychology, Departmental Director of
Recruitment

STUDENTS:

Noor-Ul-Ain Bhatti, Batley Girls High School; Zara Mahmood, Greenhead College

PROJECT TITLE:

Personality, health and well-being.

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"Extracting the data and putting them in tables and overall working with such amazing
people." Noor-Ul-Ain Bhatti from Batley Girls High School

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNT ON PLACEMENT?

"Useful communication skills, meeting deadlines and managing time, lots of
spreadsheet work." Zara Mahmood from Greenhead College

PROJECT SUPERVISOR FEEDBACK:

"I enjoyed hearing from the students what they learned from the project and seeing
how it expanded their knowledge and skill sets."

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PROJECT CASE STUDY

Department: Geography

PROJECT SUPERVISOR:

Murk Memon, PhD fellow in Arctic Climate studies

STUDENT:

Kalbir Singh, Notre Dame Catholic Sixth Form College

PROJECT TITLE:

Using satellite data to monitor how the Amazon Rainforest fires affected vegetation
health in 2019 and 2020.

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"Writing a scientific report at a high level on a topic of interest."

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNT ON PLACEMENT?

"Research skills."

PROJECT SUPERVISOR FEEDBACK:

"Teaching young pupils is very refreshing in so many ways; their energy, enthusiasm
and commitment to excel in their selected fields was inspiring for me."

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PROJECT CASE STUDY

Department: Q-Step, Sheffield Methods Institute

PROJECT SUPERVISOR:

Dr Alexandra Anderson, Q-Step Postdoctoral Research Associate

STUDENT AND PROJECT TITLE:

Shiffa Gamal, Tapton School - An investigation into how characters present in a
folktale affect the message it’s giving.
Hena Hussain, Dixons Free Sixth Form - How does Atwood’s, 'The Handmaid's
Tale' remain relevant in today's society, 30 years after its publication?
Mollie O'Connor, Heckmondwike Grammar School - The effect of social media on
young people’s mental health.
Johana Osobor, Greenhead College - Covid-19 vaccine uptake amongst ethnic
groups.
Immy Payne, New College Pontefract - How children are affected by the
imprisonment of a parent.
Fathima Ramzy, Middlesbrough College - The gender pay gap and the factors
that contribute.
Year 13 student - What had led to the NHS being overwhelmed because of
COVID-19?
Annie Speight, Huddersfield New College (HD3 4GL) - Extracurricular activities
and stress levels in students.

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"The indepth research that I did about my topic." Shiffa Gamal from Tapton School

"Making charts from collected data." Hena Hussain from Dixons Free School

"Working with an expert from a university to gain valuable and transferable academic
skills." Mollie O'Connor from Heckmondwike Grammar School

"Learning how to write a scientific report with the help of my supervisor." Johana
Osobor from Greenhead College

30 NUFFIELD RESEARCH PLACEMENTS

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNT ON PLACEMENT?

"I’ve learnt what university is going to be like." Immy Payne from New College
Pontefract
"I widened my team work skills and I picked up many transferable skills, such as data
spotting, graph work and how to carry out key literature searches." Fathima Ramzy
from Middlesborough College
"Research skills." Year 13 student

PROJECT SUPERVISOR FEEDBACK

"The students were really great and it was wonderful to see them learn quantitative
analysis skills alongside their own personal research interests."

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PROJECT CASE STUDY

Department: School of Clinical Dentistry

PROJECT SUPERVISOR:

Dr Oscar Solis Castro, Postdoctoral Research Associate

STUDENTS:

Folasade Adesanya, Wickersley School and Sports College; Aliya Bacakoglu,
Greenhead College; Alex Barnett, Elliott Hudson College; Asiyah Rahman, Elliott
Hudson College

PROJECT TITLE:

The stem cell landscape.

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"The experience of working on an actual research project." Folasade Adesanya from
Wickersley School and Sports College

"Working with a professional." Aliya Bacakoglu from Greenhead College

"It allowed me to gain an invaluable insight into professional research, allowing me to
have a glimpse of the career that awaits me." Alex Barnett from Elliott Hudson
College

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNT ON PLACEMENT?

"How to write university style essays." Asiyah Rahman from Elliott Hudson College

PROJECT SUPERVISOR FEEDBACK:

"It was great to work with bright and motivated students."

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PROJECT CASE STUDY

Department: Business School

PROJECT SUPERVISOR:

Professor Peter Howley, Professor of Economics and Behavioral Science

STUDENTS AND PROJECT TITLES:

Josh Chambers, Elliott Hudson College and Ruqayya Hussain, Greenhead
College - A cross-country comparison of death tolls from Covid-19.
Isabelle Taylor, Holderness Academy and Sixth Form College - The economics of
happiness.

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"I enjoyed working with a subject specialist while being able to work independently on
a project I was passionate about." Ruqayya Hussain from Greenhead College

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNT ON PLACEMENT?

"I have learnt how to work as a team and work to a deadline." Josh Chambers from
Elliott Hudson College
"I have definitely developed my independent research skills and learned how to utilise
my time to produce a strong report." Isabelle Taylor from Holderness Academy and
Sixth Form College

PROJECT SUPERVISOR FEEDBACK:

"I particularly enjoyed working with enthusiastic young people."

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PROJECT CASE STUDY

Department: LICAMM

PROJECT SUPERVISOR:

Helen McPherson, Senior Research Technician

STUDENT:

Millie Armstrong, Franklin College

PROJECT TITLE:

Clot Structure and Pregnancy.

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"The continuous support and guidance from both the regional coordinator and project
provider both before and after the placement."

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNT ON PLACEMENT?

"How to successfully communicate in a team."

PROJECT SUPERVISOR FEEDBACK:

"I enjoyed watching the students grow with confidence, their willingness to engage
with the topic and the questions they asked."

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PROJECT CASE STUDY

Department: School of Mechanical Engineering

PROJECT SUPERVISOR:

Professor Harvey Thompson, Professor of Computational Fluid Dynamics

STUDENT:

Adam Mahmood, Greenhead College; Ibrahim Totakhail, Leeds City College

PROJECT TITLE:

Engineering data analysis using Machine Learning.

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"Learning about the way that engineers approach design processes." Adam
Mahmood from Greenhead College

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNT ON PLACEMENT?

"Developed research skills and improved my communication skills by means of
completing the project." Ibrahim Totakhail from Leeds City College

PROJECT SUPERVISOR FEEDBACK:

"It is always interesting to give young people the chance to work on some real
problems."

35 NUFFIELD RESEARCH PLACEMENTS

PROJECT CASE STUDY

Department: Economics

PROJECT SUPERVISOR:

Dr Arpita Bhattacharjee, Lecturer in Economics

STUDENTS:

Year 13 student, Dixons Allerton Academy

PROJECT TITLE:

Evaluating ethnic and gender pay gap in the UK.

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"There was feedback and lots of help."

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNT ON PLACEMENT?

"How to work independently."

36 NUFFIELD RESEARCH PLACEMENTS

PROJECT CASE STUDY

Department: Institute of Robotics, Autonomous
Systems, and Sensing; School of Electronic and
Electrical Engineering

PROJECT SUPERVISOR:

Dr Viktor Doychinov, Research Fellow

STUDENTS AND PROJECT TITLES:

Zayyan Mahmood, Ermysted's Grammar School - Implantable antennas for rats
Naomi Simpson, Greenhead College - Investigating the effect of attenuation on
link distances in varying environments

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"I enjoyed learning about the mathematical foundations of the research." Zayyan
Mahmood from Ermysted's Grammar School

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNT ON PLACEMENT?

"I have gained a greater understanding of how to work in a team and what happens in
a research team in a university." Naomi Simpson from Greenhead College

37 NUFFIELD RESEARCH PLACEMENTS

PROJECT CASE STUDY

Department: School of Linguistics and Phonetic

PROJECT SUPERVISOR:

Dr Gisela Tomé Lourido, Lecturer in Sociophonetics

STUDENT:

Olivia Germaine, Heckmondwike Grammar School

PROJECT TITLE:

The role of accent variation in speech processing.

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"I really enjoyed developing my quantitative research skills, that will be useful for
university."

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNT ON PLACEMENT?

"I've learnt transferable skills such as problem solving and creative thinking."

38 NUFFIELD RESEARCH PLACEMENTS

PROJECT CASE STUDY

Department: Sociology

PROJECT SUPERVISOR:

Dr Jack Palmer, Research Fellow and Dr Tom Campbell, Associate Professor in
Social Theory

STUDENT:

Year 13 student, St Mary's College Voluntary Catholic Academy

PROJECT TITLE:

Mapping Zygmunt Bauman’s ‘Postmodern Turn’: Correspondence and Intellectual
Networks in Sociology.

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"I found it so informative and a wonderful experience especially since this placement
gave me the opportunity to research for the first time."

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNT ON PLACEMENT?

"I have learnt the basics of coding , I have become more confident with quantitative
methods. I also have a stronger sense of independence when it comes to research,
analysing articles and texts too to find the best, most accurate information."

39 NUFFIELD RESEARCH PLACEMENTS

PROJECT CASE STUDY

PROJECT SUPERVISOR:

Dr Paula Clarke, Associate Professor in Psychological Approaches to Childhood and
Inclusive Education

STUDENTS:

Year 13 student , Notre Dame Catholic Sixth Form College; Jessica Snead, Wales
High School

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"Being part of a team and meeting new people." Jessica Snead from Wales High
School

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNT ON PLACEMENT?

"I have developed my communication and learnt valuable skills." Jessica Snead from
Wales High School

PROJECT SUPERVISOR FEEDBACK:

"I enjoyed putting resources and guidance together for the students and tailoring
these to the students specific interests and skills. I also very much enjoyed seeing the
students' confidence grow as they used their developing quantitative skills to analyse
our dataset."

40 NUFFIELD RESEARCH PLACEMENTS

PROJECT CASE STUDY

Department: Leeds Institute for Teaching Excellence

PROJECT SUPERVISOR:

Femi Owolade, Research Assistant and Dr Iwi Ugiagbe-Green, Associate Professor

STUDENT:

Diana Furtado, Elliott Hudson College

PROJECT TITLE:

What characteristics are associated with the achievement of a “good degree”?

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"I was able to explore an issue that I am really passionate about. My research project
will be used to increase diversity and equality at the University of Leeds which will
create a better environment for minority ethnic students like me."

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNT ON PLACEMENT?

"Being part of NRP has improved my quantitative analysis skills. Moreover, I have
also developed a range of other skills including communication, team-working and
academic research."

PROJECT SUPERVISOR FEEDBACK:

"Opportunity to mentor the student and improve their research skills."

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PROJECT CASE STUDY

Department: Business Studies/Psychology

PROJECT SUPERVISOR:

Dr Xingjie Wei, Assistant Professor in Business Analytics and Machine Learning

STUDENT:

Jessica Hammond, Elliott Hudson College

PROJECT TITLE:

Understanding consumer emotion on laundry products.

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"My project was related to my interests."

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNT ON PLACEMENT?

"How people research different topics and extract data."

PROJECT SUPERVISOR FEEDBACK:

"Working with students and promoting STEM education."

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PROJECT CASE STUDY

Department: School of Dentistry

PROJECT SUPERVISOR:

Professor Sue Pavitt, Professor in Translational & Applied Health Research and Abi
Turner, DenTCRU Hygiene & Therapy Research Manager

STUDENTS:

Zainab Jabarzai, Attiya Khalil & one other Year 13 student from Batley Girls High
School

PROJECT TITLE:

RAISED in Yorkshire: Tackling oral health inequalities.

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"Collecting results." Zainab Jabarzai from Batley Girls High School

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNT ON PLACEMENT?

"Research skills." Attiya Khalil from Batley Girls High School

PROJECT SUPERVISOR FEEDBACK:

"I love being able to teach and mentor the students, who were really enthusiastic. It's
really rewarding to see the students grasp complicated topics, and work towards
creating excellent reports."

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PROJECT CASE STUDY

Department: Biology

PROJECT SUPERVISOR:

Dr Kelly Redeker, Lecturer in Biology

STUDENTS AND PROJECT TITLE:

Niranjanlal Ahilal, Abbey Grange Church of England Academy - Volatile organic
compounds and early diagnosis of Parkinson’s disease.
Sania Arfan, Dixons Free Sixth Form - Can we use human breath as a diagnostic
tool for Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s disease?
Shantel Bradley, Sheffield Park Academy - Literature review on the early
diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease.
Jess Wenman, Outwood Academy Easingwold - Can lung cancer be detected at
an earlier stage or are there too many factors preventing diagnosis?

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"The exposure to research and evaluation of scientific papers." Niranjanla Ahilal from
Abbey Grange Church of England Academy

"I really enjoyed gaining a deeper insight into neuroscience beyond the A-Level spec.
Being able to construct a research project on something that I have been interested in
for quite a while was an amazing opportunity and a great way to test my abilities."
Sania Arfan from Dixons Free Sixth Form

"Finding out how to write a research paper." Jess Wenman, Outwood Academy
Easingwold

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNT ON PLACEMENT?

"I've learned how to ask for help - knowing that support was available but not being
able to take it was something I'd always struggled with. But with Nuffield, I've become
more confident in being able to ask for help." Shantal Bradley from Sheffield Park
Academy

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"I love being able to teach and mentor the students, who were really enthusiastic. It's

PROJECT SUPERVISOR FEEDBACK

"Meeting committed and enthusiastic young scientists."

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PROJECT CASE STUDY

Department: Law

PROJECT SUPERVISOR:

Dr Joe Tomlinson, Senior Lecturer in Public Law

STUDENTS:

Gifty Adomako, Leeds City College; Year 13 student, Elliott Hudson College; Year 13
student, Greenhead College

PROJECT TITLE:

Rights-Based Resistance to Public Health Measures.

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"The writing of my project. The chance to write down your findings and put your
thought process down for others to see was very satisfying." Gifty Adomako, Leeds
City College

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNT ON PLACEMENT?

"Planning and organisational skills." Gifty Adomako, Leeds City College

PROJECT SUPERVISOR FEEDBACK:

"The students were excellent and brought their own experiences to the project."

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"I love being able to teach and mentor the students, who were really enthusiastic. It's

PROJECT CASE STUDY

Department: Physics

PROJECT SUPERVISOR:

Matthew Nicol, PhD Student

STUDENT:

Jajay Cook, Barnsley College

PROJECT TITLE:

Medical Applications of Nuclear Physics.

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"Everything."

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNT ON PLACEMENT?

"Working is enjoyable."

PROJECT SUPERVISOR FEEDBACK:

"I love being able to teach and mentor the students, who were really enthusiastic. It's
really rewarding to see the students grasp complicated topics, and work towards
creating excellent reports."

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PROJECT CASE STUDY

Department: Physics

PROJECT SUPERVISOR:

Mark Laughton

STUDENT:

Paige Peavoy, New College Pontefract

PROJECT TITLE:

Calculating the Differential Rotation of the Sun.

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"I really enjoyed the research."

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNT ON PLACEMENT?

"How to write an academic report."

PROJECT SUPERVISOR FEEDBACK:

"Paige was so enthusiastic about the project."

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PROJECT CASE STUDY

Department: Biomedical Sciences

PROJECT SUPERVISOR:

Dr Adam Odell, Senior Lecturer in Biomedical Science

STUDENTS AND PROJECT TITLE:

Aleksandrs (Winter) Ivanovs, St Aidans and St John Fisher Associated Sixth Form
- How Moexipril with TNF-Alpha affects peripheral blood mononuclear cell binding
quantity in four different endothelial cell lines.
Nisah Shafiq, Feversham Academy - The screening of novel drugs which modify
interactions of PBMCs with HUVECs.
Georgia Vizard, Selby College - Screening for novel drugs that modify the
interactions between immune cells and the endothelium.

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT DID YOU ENJOY ABOUT THE
PLACEMENT?:

"Two of the main stages of my research project that I enjoyed were the development
and writing stages of my report. Despite the several hurdles and subsequent stress I
had to overcome during these stages, I really enjoyed the process of compiling the
information gathered and structuring it into a more easily digestible, structured and
much more enjoyable format" Aleksandrs Ivanovs from St Aidan's and St John Fisher
Associated Sixth Form

"The opportunity it gave me to develop my research skills, and how it furthered my
knowledge about scientific research." Georgia Vizard from Selby College

STUDENT FEEDBACK - WHAT HAVE YOU LEARNT ON PLACEMENT?

"I have learnt a range of transferrable skills such as using different functions in Excel
and I also learned how to reference correctly and this will be useful for when I am in
university." Nisah Shafiq from Feversham Academy

PROJECT SUPERVISOR FEEDBACK:

"Student engagement, interaction, and enthusiasm for the project."

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SCHOOLS

Students were offered placements from these schools:
Abbey Grange Church of England Academy (LS16 5EA)
Aston Academy (S26 4SF)
Barnsley College (S70 2YW)
Batley Girls High School (WF17 0LD)
Beckfoot School (BD16 1EE)
Bingley Grammar School (BD16 2RS)
Dixons Allerton Academy (BD8 0DH)
Dixons Free Sixth Form (BD5 7JR)
Elliott Hudson College (LS11 0LT)
Ermysted's Grammar School (BD23 1PL)
Feversham Academy (BD3 0LT)
Franklin College (DN34 5BY)
Greenhead College (HD1 4ES)
Hall Cross Academy (DN1 2HY)
Heckmondwike Grammar School (WF16 0AH)
Holderness Academy and Sixth Form College (HU12 8UZ)
Horsforth School (LS18 5RF)
Huddersfield New College (HD3 4GL)
King Ecgbert School (S17 3QU)
Leeds City College (LS3 1AA)
Middlesbrough College (TS2 1AD)
New College Pontefract (WF8 4QR)
Notre Dame Catholic Sixth Form College (LS2 9BL)
Outwood Academy Easingwold (YO61 3EF)
Scarborough Sixth Form College (YO12 5LF)
Selby College (YO8 8AT)
Sheffield Park Academy (S2 1SN)
Silverdale School (S11 9QH)
St Aidans and St John Fisher Associated Sixth Form (0)
St Mary's College Voluntary Catholic Academy (HU6 7TN)
St Wilfrid's Catholic High School & Sixth Form College: A Voluntary Academy (WF7 6BD)
Tapton School (S10 5RG)
Thomas Rotherham College (S60 2BE)
Wales High School (S26 5QQ)
Wickersley School and Sports College (S66 1JL)

68% of the schools that expressed an interest in NRPs were offered a
placement. Many schools also had more than one student.

88% of students who 95% of students completed
completed a successful their virtual Nuffield
application were placed Research Placement.
on a NRP

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