Population Data Science at Swansea University is thrilled to continue showcasing our 2024 cohort of Summer Interns. Yesterday, we introduced the first 4 of our 16 talented interns and shared their exciting projects and goals. Today, we are focusing on the next group of 4 interns, offering more insights into their innovative research and valuable contributions.
Joy Anthony
What were you studying before you started your internship?
I am studying for an MSc in Data Science for Health and Social Care at the University of Edinburgh.
What made you want to apply for an internship with Population Data Science?
The internship with Population Data Science is an attractive opportunity to gain experience handling individual-level data, develop insight into how research is conducted using health administration data, and communicate research findings and outputs.
Could you tell us a little about the project you are working on?
The project involves investigating the winter pressure on hospitals caused by healthcare acquired infections and admissions for respiratory-related illnesses, as part of the Administrative Data Research Wales Major Societal Challenges programme..
What skills do you hope to develop, and what outcomes are you aiming to achieve over the summer?
This project is particularly exciting as it allows me to experience the methodology of population health researchers. While developing technical skills in data management and various software applications and languages, I am also developing an understanding of the potential and limitations of the administrative data landscape. Over the summer I’ll be working towards presenting a number of statistical outputs and insights.
Do you have a career in mind at the moment, and how do you hope the internship will help you towards that goal?
I am probably going to pursue a career in population health or research. Either way, the internship will help me achieve this goal by refining my technical skills, such as efficient coding, developing my ability to communicate the outputs from my work, developing my understanding of data management, and further developing my knowledge of scientific processes.
Line Manager: Stuart Bedston. Mentor: Hoda Abbasizanjani.
Lauren Hill
What were you studying before you started your internship?
Before I began my internship, I was completing my final year studying towards a BSc in Computer Science at the University of Bristol.
What made you want to apply for an internship with Population Data Science?
I really enjoyed the data analysis that I was doing as part of my dissertation at university, so I thought doing an internship in Population in Data Science would be a good opportunity for me to further improve this skill set and be part of work that can make a positive impact on communities and society.
Could you tell us a little about the project you are working on?
I am analysing the Upstream Cymru dataset to examine how factors such as mental wellbeing and school engagement relate to varying risks of youth and family homelessness, with the aim of reviewing the effectiveness of different homelessness interventions.
What skills do you hope to develop, and what outcomes are you aiming to achieve over the summer?
I am hoping to build my confidence in presenting academic work. My main deliverable is a report on youth and family homelessness in Wales, but I have also been producing documentation that explains the code I used to clean and process data so that my code can easily be used by people who do not have much coding experience.
Do you have a career in mind at the moment, and how do you hope the internship will help you towards that goal?
I am open to a range of new opportunities, and I’m currently investigating roles in project management and data science. I hope this internship will help me gain a deeper understanding of my skillset while providing lots of opportunities to learn new hard skills that I would not have experienced during my university studies.
Line Manager: Ian Thomas. Mentor: Peter Mackie.
Leighton Katus
What were you studying before you started your internship?
I was a final year BSc (Hons) Computer Science student at Swansea University.
What made you want to apply for an internship with Population Data Science?
I wanted an opportunity to develop my software development skills and computational thinking in a real-world environment, and I saw this as the perfect way to gain that valuable experience. As well as that, I wanted to have a real-world product that I could point people to when I apply for jobs in the future.
Could you tell us a little about the project you are working on?
I am working on a forms collection tool for patient reported data for people with Multiple Sclerosis (MS). Data collected is then analysed, allowing a further understanding of what living with MS is like.
What skills do you hope to develop, and what outcomes are you aiming to achieve over the summer?
I hope to develop software development and engineering skills, and gain experience in using external tools that I would not have been exposed to in academia. This will boost my knowledge and experience in the field of computer science, and make me a much stronger programmer. Additionally, I am hoping to develop my skills in data science techniques, like data collection and manipulation. I did my final year project in keylogger detection, which involved system data collection. With this internship I can learn new skills and techniques to more effectively and professionally work with sensitive data.
Do you have a career in mind at the moment, and how do you hope the internship will help you towards that goal?
I have a job offer as a software tester for a banking software company, and this internship definitely helped me land that offer because it gave me the chance to share my experience and knowledge with the software lifecycle process. I have had several opportunities to test the software here, and that gave me a well-rounded understanding of how software is developed and tested. This opportunity offers a deeper understanding of computer science, which will be invaluable throughout my career.
Line Manager: Hazel Lockhart-Jones. Mentor: Justin Biddle.
Mohammed Nayim Ali Salam
What were you studying before you started your internship?
I recently completed my second-year studying Software Engineering.
What made you want to apply for an internship with Population Data Science?
I applied for this internship because I understand the immense value they offer. Internships teach crucial skills such as teamwork, real-world tasks, understanding customer requirements, and more. In the long run, these experiences can make you stand out in the job market, making it easier to secure employment.
Could you tell us a little about the project you are working on?
I am working on developing a blog application for the HDRUK Phenotype Library and Concept Library websites. Both websites will feature news sections on the home landing page and a dedicated blog page with various types of posts. This project requires a thorough understanding of the requirements, detailed planning and design, and software development.
What skills do you hope to develop, and what outcomes are you aiming to achieve over the summer?
I look forward to further developing my ability to work in an agile team environment and expanding my software development knowledge, particularly in Python, Django, SQL, and much more.
Do you have a career in mind at the moment, and how do you hope the internship will help you towards that goal?
I want to become a Software Engineer. This internship is perfect for preparing me for that role and will boost my CV, making me a more competitive candidate in the job market.
Line Manager: Roshan Toby. Mentor: Artur Zinnurov.
For the latest updates on our Intern Programme, visit https://popdatasci.swan.ac.uk/about-us/summer-internship-programme/