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Tejal Shah

BEng Medical Engineering (2016-2019)

  • Worked as a Research Assistant at the University of Bradford's laboratories
  • In November 2020 secured a role working for Johnson & Johnson
  • Chose Bradford after visiting the campus on an Applicant Experience Day and participating in the University's Summer School

 

For Tejal's alumni profile webpage

Tejal Shah, Biomedical Engineer, presenting her final year project poster

Why I chose the University of Bradford?

I chose the University of Bradford because of an Applicant Experience Day and this was further reinforced by the summer school I attended in July 2016. I initially wanted to be a graphic designer but my career track soon changed! My experience of the university has been phenomenal, from securing my place via clearing, to being employed by various teams within the University while a student and even post-graduation, the University has certainly helped me realise my goals and provided me with a platform to go on and develop as a person.

This photo is for Tejal Shah's Alumni Profile

Favourite memory?

My favourite memory has to be running Summer Schools as a Student Ambassador and seeing shy potential students come in and develop over just a few days. Playing a role in opening their minds to University was really rewarding.
 
My most transformative memory has to be the calling campaigns which I worked on as a Student Ambassador, speaking to applicants who were thinking of coming to the University and sharing my experience with them.
 
 

Finding myself

 
I really enjoyed hands-on tasks at the University, like being in the manufacturing and testing laboratories, conducting experiments and tests. Furthermore, my experiences as a Student Ambassador helped me realise that I really enjoyed  working with people in a customer service focused role. This was amplified by the work I had done with the Customer Relationship Management (CRM) team on calling campaigns. I even won a few awards whilst working at the University. Through this experience, I have met and spoken to so many students about university, personal statements, Applicant Experience Days and even working on clearing. Being able to work on clearing was resonant for me, as it was only the year before that I had been on the other side of the phone as a an applicant.
 
 

Searching for a job

Initially my main goal as a recent graduate was to secure a place on a graduate scheme, but unfortunately, I had one negative experience where a graduate scheme opportunity was completely missold to me. This led to a conversation with my academic supervisor, from my final year project, who offered me the opportunity to undertake an internship as a Research Assistant for medical devices, within the Medical Engineering department. This was a good opportunity to develop more experience as a recent graduate and further develop my professional skills.
 
Following 6 months as a Research Assistant I secured my dream job at Johnson & Johnson. The opportunity to be employed as a Research Assistant helped provide me with the experience needed to be able to develop further and prepared me for the application process that brought my goals to life.
 
 

 

What my Career has involved so far

My role as a Research Assistant saw me manufacture and test bioresorbable shape memory polymers that can be loaded with drugs. This can range from implants to sutures. This role utilised my understanding gained from my degree, and in particular, my final year project. This field has endless potential with what projects you can contribute to, it also is an area that is constantly growing with an ageing population needing more Biomedical Engineers to provide for their needs.
 
 
Tejal Shah at her graduation ceremony.