Just a few months ago I was at the beginning of my doctoral research journey: Charlotte Hargreaves

Just a few months ago I was at the beginning of my doctoral research journey. Four years can seem like a daunting task but within my first week as part of the CDT at Royal Holloway, I felt reassured that I was best placed to achieve my goals. I feel so lucky to have had the opportunities to meet some of the best academics in the cybersecurity field. I have also thoroughly enjoyed meeting my fellow CDT cohort and I have learnt a lot already from some of the older CDT students.  

It has been exciting to learn of, and experience, the inter-disciplinary nature of the course. I originate from the field of Psychology but I am thrilled to have the opportunity to take on new areas of study and new perspectives surrounding security. Within the short time I have been here, I have had many interesting perspectives provided to me from my peers, lecturers, and independent study.  

The first year of the CDT involves taught modules from the Information Security MSc at Royal Holloway. It has been great to engage with the modules and the challenges that come from learning a new field. I believe everyone has enjoyed the breadth and depth of the different topics. My cohort have been busy lately with comprising a report and presentation on the prospective features to be implemented by Apple on reducing CSAM. As a group we have coordinated the mixture of backgrounds well and delivered a successful combination of technical and social elements for discussion.  

Moving forward, I am really looking forward to engaging more with the course and discovering new areas of research within cybersecurity, particularly through my summer project. Furthermore, the prospect of developing a thesis based on a culmination of these new ideas feels like a unique and privileged chance to work within such a rapidly growing, important field.


 


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