A reflection on my time in the CDT: Dr Ashley Fraser

I joined the CDT in 2016, having graduated months earlier with a degree in mathematics. As an undergraduate, I loved pure mathematics, and was excited to learn about cryptography as an application of this. I quickly realised that I wanted to pursue this interest further. I started looking at options, and it didn’t take long for the CDT to show up in my search results. It seemed a perfect fit - a broad training structure in the first year would allow me to expand my knowledge and, as I hadn’t chosen a specific research subject, give me time to pick a topic.

I applied and was thrilled to receive an offer to join the CDT.

Upon arrival at Royal Holloway, I was surprised (and a little intimidated) by the scope of information security – I had not thought beyond cryptography! However, the activities and classes of the first year helped to make this subject more accessible (and definitely expanded my knowledge). At the end of my first year, I completed a summer project on formal definitions of privacy for electronic voting. This led to an interest in privacy definitions, and I settled on this as my research topic. Over the next few years, I delved into definitions of privacy for various cryptographic protocols, and eventually submitted my thesis on this topic in August 2021.

Throughout my time in the CDT, I have had many opportunities that have enhanced my PhD experience and set me up for a future career. The CDT places emphasis on the importance of Industry engagement and facilitated several events to interact with industry partners. These introduced me to, and gave me insight into, how academia and industry impact each other. I was also given the option and opportunity to interrupt my studies to complete an internship in industry. I spent three months at Fetch.AI, where I worked on a research project on the topic of privacy for blockchain. I’m very grateful for this experience, as it gave me the opportunity to learn about research outside of academia, and work on a project with real-world applications.

My time at Royal Holloway was overwhelmingly positive. In addition to the experiences mentioned above, I was able to travel, attend numerous conferences, and get involved in teaching in the Information Security department. I am now working on a research project on self-sovereign identity as a postdoc at the University of Surrey, and I believe that my time in the CDT has set me up with the tools I need to succeed

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