What Yas says about the Master's in Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality

Yas from Iran

Why did you choose this programme? Why in Sweden? 

"I chose this programme because I've always been interested in mixing art and technology, specifically immersive and interactive art. With a background in computer science, I knew that Virtual Reality and Augmented Reality were kind of ways to be creative using technology. It also has more room for the arts than pure computer science. That was mainly why I chose to study VR and AR. While searching for programmes that focused specifically on VR and AR, which is very limited, one of the universities that popped up was Lund University. It wasn't predetermined or anything. I didn't know for sure that I would come to Sweden. Searching for programmes in my field of interest was how I found Lund University. I realised its good ranking and found it was pretty, so I decided to join."

About the programme and the teaching style 

What do you think about your programme (so far)? Does it live up to your expectations?

"I think it is pretty good because most of the Master's programmes that I was looking into were very research-oriented, so you are not taught the basics. However, I wanted something that would start from scratch because I didn't have any experience in programming or VR and AR. What I liked about this programme was that from the first year, you would be taught all the basics and foundational knowledge that you need before focusing on research. Right now, I'm doing my thesis and I liked the structure of going through basic courses such as computer graphics and an introduction to VR. We started studying Unity, which is the programming language that you use mostly for virtual reality, and we started from scratch. I had no idea what that was. I know a friend who is studying in Canada, pursuing the same programme at a different university, and she was thrown into research from the very beginning without having any background knowledge. It’s rather sad how she struggled so I'm grateful for starting from teaching and then the research part. So, that was one of the things that was useful for me in this programme. Yeah, I think I’m really satisfied with my choice of programme."

What is the best thing about your programme? 

"The best thing about my programme I would say is the people because we're just this small group of seven people and we're super close. If you have any problems, you can talk with each other and solve academic problems and stuff. I like the relationship with the professors as well. In my old university, there was a hierarchy and you had to address professors in a certain way but over here, there is mutual respect between professors and students. That's what I like."

Why should prospective students choose this programme?

"I would say it depends on your background. If you're studying computer science, anything in technology, really and you want something that's not a bit dry in my opinion, then this programme is for you. If you want to learn just about data and stuff, machine learning is the way to go. But if you want something that combines technology, math, user design and creativity, then this field is for you. If you want to be closer to humans rather than just machines, I think that this programme is perfect. This is because you get to design stuff with the user in mind – what would the user like? How would they think?"

What is your favourite course and why?

"The Virtual Reality in Theory and Practice course was my favourite course because the first half of the course was where I understood how to work with Unity and Blender. Then the second half was the project that came from the knowledge that we had from those two courses and it was the project where we collaborated with Ukrainian students. That was fun. The theoretical part of the classes was really interesting because it wasn't just a professor explaining theory, they explained stuff and then we experimented with the headsets. This gave us a great understanding as we had cool hands-on experience. Again, it was just fun, having to collaborate with students from another university. The topic was to think about how we could help the Ukranian students cope with the war. I think doing something with technology that would help people is cool especially if you are collaborating with them. There was a big Demo Day at the end which was fun as well."

Have you gained any practical experience during your studies?

"Yeah, I think so. I mean, with all of the projects that we had, we presented them to companies. I think that was a really good way to present yourself to companies and know how you can market yourself. We also had ARKARD, which is the career fair and I think it helped me to make connections with companies. Right now, I'm doing my thesis with a company. Overall, I think in this programme, they try their very best to give us connections."

What do you think of the teaching style at Lund University? 

"I think it's good because it’s less stressful than other universities that I've been to. From my previous experiences, it was mostly focused on exams. Grades were more important whereas in this programme, what I see in general is that they care more about you understanding the topic. You can always retake an exam which makes it less stressful. Most of our courses didn't even have exams, rather we had projects. I feel like through the projects, I've learned a lot more than I would if I was only memorising to get a good grade. I liked how they tried their best to have this not-so-stressful environment and help us understand the topics much more. You don't just have to download information, you have to understand it. There’s also some sort of freedom which means it’s really up to you, how you want to study and how much you want to understand." 

Thoughts on being an international student at Lund and tips for prospective students 

What is it like to be an international student at Lund University?

"I say it's very fun. In the beginning, we had like a month with our guild, that was just a celebration. I don't think I saw my room a lot during those days because I was constantly going out. There was something to do all the time. It was great for me and helped with homesickness. You're so busy during that month, like meeting people and socialising that it just doesn't hit you that much. Other than that, everyone is super welcoming. Of course, it's hard not being at home but I've never felt like I was alone in this experience. A lot of international students and even non-international students are so welcoming, and they're super kind. So, I think overall, it’s been really good."

Do you have any advice for other students who are considering coming to Lund?

"I would say do it because it's super nice. Lund University has a good, high ranking. Besides that, I think Sweden as a country is super welcoming. People are super nice and their level of English is so good that you don't have to worry about not being able to communicate. Being someone who gets stressed about studies, the time that I've had at Lund University has made me way less stressed. That’s important because they try their best to not make your exams appear to be the end of the world." 

What have you liked most about living in Sweden, and what have you learned from living in Sweden?

"I love the 'fika' culture. It is so nice. What I've learned from living in Sweden and Swedish people is to have this balance in your personal life and your work life. Your work isn't everything. You do your job and that's it. You need to enjoy your life. Even the fika culture is to just take a moment to relax and enjoy your life. It’s such an important thing that I've learned and also you don't need a super fancy house and stuff. Just a normal, relaxed life is always better than trying to consistently achieve something."

Have you been able to get by mainly with English in Sweden?

Yes, and I think that's both a good thing and a bad thing because I'm trying to learn Swedish but their English is so good that you don't have to try to speak Swedish. This I believe makes me try less and I go on with my English. At the same time, you don't have to worry about it but it makes learning Swedish a bit harder. I’m trying to learn Swedish now for work later but for now, my focus is on my studies. 

Plans for the future and career preparation

What are your future plans?

"It’s a bit vague at the moment because I don't know exactly what I want to do but I know that I would like to stay in Sweden. So, right now I think anything related to my field that I could get to stay in Sweden would be nice. I don’t have anything definite like exactly what I want to do because I feel like you usually have such high expectations from your first-ever job outside of university. I feel like this is the start of building connections and that through your first job, you can get a better second job and so on. I’m staying in Sweden. That, I’m sure about!"

In what ways do you feel your programme has helped prepare you for your future career path?

"I would say all of the projects that we did, gave us a lot of the needed knowledge and also a lot of confidence. Especially with our first VR project, I thought: ‘I can't do it! I can't build this whole project from just barely studying this theoretical programme’. But you know as you push yourself, you see that you can do a lot of things that normally you thought you couldn't. So, I think the confidence did a lot and also the connections that we gained during the projects and the demos from companies. Right now, I know a lot of people in different companies which is valuable. We can apply for a job knowing we know certain people in the company, and we have also built a good portfolio with the projects."