"My interest in robotics arose already during my Bachelor's in Electrical Engineering, which I also followed at the University of Twente. I remember a project in which we learned to stabilise and control a kind of mini-Segway via sensors and actuators - and a lot of mathematics. In the process, we had to perform various tests, such as driving up a small hill, and spinning around, with the ultimate goal: a football match with the other student teams!
Now I must admit that my team and I were already very happy that ours was somewhat steerable and could stay upright, but there were also teams who were drifting through the corridors with their Segway. I really liked this practical way of learning, and - judging by what I hear from students at other universities - it is also really unique to Twente.
The Segway project was part of the Systems & Control module, an important part of robotics. And so there were more projects during my bachelor's that sparked my interest in robotics. That's why I decided to go in this direction after obtaining my bachelor's degree.
New Master's programme
It was quite a gamble to choose the master's in Robotics. I had actually planned to pursue the Master's in Electrical Engineering with a specialisation in Robotics and Mechatronics. But this specialisation was dropped because it became part of the new Master's in Robotics. At that point, no one had taken this master's before: I was part of the first batch of students.
Not that I minded, though. In fact, in the end, it was an advantage that the specialisation became part of a broader master's, because this way, I also got acquainted with specialisations from other disciplines. This gave me a much broader perspective. For instance, I am interested in subjects like mechatronics and automation, but I also find the software side of robotics very fascinating. What I really like is that within the master's you have a lot of freedom of choice in the courses you want to take. Funnily enough, because you're dealing with subjects that you're genuinely interested in, I actually found the master's less challenging than my bachelor's, in which you gain a lot of knowledge about the various aspects of electrical engineering.
Optimising 3D printing techniques
Just like my bachelor's, the Master's in Robotics is quite focused on challenge-based learning. As a student, you get to work on hands-on projects that arise directly from societal or business-related challenges. For my thesis, for example, I worked on improving 3D printing techniques. If you want to develop high-strength material, for example for spacecraft or medical implants, the pattern in which you 3D-print matters a lot. You actually want to leave as little 'empty' space as possible. Using reinforcement learning, I developed an algorithmic approach that controls the 3D printer so that it prints in the most optimal way. Through reinforcement learning, the 3D printer learns from the mistakes it makes, so it performs better and better step by step.
You might not immediately think about it, but this is robotics too! The stereotypical image people often have of robotics is the humanoid robots, so the human-shaped, cyber-like robots you see in films, for example. And yes, those exist, but that is definitely not what this master's focuses on. Robotics is so much more than that. You might not immediately think of it, but a self-driving car is also an example of a robot, or a drone, for example.
First graduate
At this point, I have managed to successfully complete my thesis - it is even published as a scientific paper! - and I can call myself the first alumnus of the Master's in Robotics! What I am going to do next? I am going to take some time to think about that. I've had a nice and well-paid side job as a software developer at a start-up for four years, so I can allow myself this time to think about my future.
Besides, I also got to know the work field better over the past two years thanks to an ASML Technology Scholarship. That's a really good tip for students starting a technical master's, by the way! With this scholarship, you receive 10,000 euros spread over two years and you get a personal training programme and your own mentor within ASML. It was very valuable because I was able to build up a great network. I had about 15 meetings with people within different departments, so I really got a good idea of the various directions I could take. In the coming period, I am going to think about what suits me best, which could also be at another company than ASML. And I still think a PhD is a good option too!"
