Undergraduate Visionary 2011: Philip Deakin
Philip Deakin, the 2011 Undergraduate Visionary, obtained an MEng degree in manufacturing engineering from Trinity College Cambridge, graduating at the top of his year with a first class and distinction.
During his time at university, Philip completed two internships with Rolls-Royce working firstly for its air safety investigation team before working as an engine design engineer for the Ministry of Defence.
Moreover, in spring 2009 he was part of the winning team of the Npower Energy Challenge, presenting strategic recommendations to the board of directors at Wembley Stadium.
Before his final year, Philip used his Institution scholarship towards funding a summer in Paris on a work placement with Total Exploration & Production. This not only allowed him to learn French, but it was his first real exposure to the oil and gas industry. Keen to continue exploring the engineering industry outside the UK, in his final year Philip organised a two week research project to Singapore and Malaysia. Visiting over 30 companies, the group delivered a detailed report on manufacturing in South East Asia.
After graduating in 2010, Philip joined Shell Upstream International in Aberdeen as a Production Technologist working in production optimisation. To gain practical, hands-on experience, he recently moved offshore in May 2011 as a Wellsite Drilling Engineer in the Dutch Sector of the North Sea. He finds the energy sector an exciting place to work and hopes to continue his work in this important industry.
He said: “I believe that engineers must take the opportunities open to them to promote the breadth and diversity of what engineering encompasses.”
He has also chosen to work on projects about which he is passionate, and which can inspire young students to get excited about engineering. He said: “I’ve test driven an Aston Martin; had the chance to have a flight in a Eurofighter Typhoon; lived on a vineyard to learn French; visited the Guinness factory in Malaysia, and had dinner with the Red Arrows pilots. These were all amazing experiences for me, and I know that show the really exciting side of engineering that young people want to hear about. Describing what it’s like to drive an Astron Martin round a track at 170mph is a great hook for getting teenagers to learn more about engineering.”
Philip currently works for Shell on an offshore oil rig. Working two weeks on, and then having four weeks off, he has around 200 days of holiday a year – time that is set aside for voluntary work for charities and local communities. He explained: “Throughout my life, I have received incredible help and support from charities or organizations, such as the Institution, the Royal Academy of Engineering, the Ogden Trust and the Arkwright Scholarship Trust. I have never forgotten what they have done for me, and I’ve made a commitment to go back to them to help them help other youngsters so that they can benefit from the same opportunities that I have. For example, I give talks to school children, and next week for the Ogden and Arkwright Trusts, I’m going into a school to talk to children about how physics relates to every day life.”
“If I could give one piece of advice to school children or engineering students, I would say this: keep your eyes and ears open and take every opportunity that comes along. Opportunities don’t happen by accident, though, so make things work for you – even something that seems small like taking part in a student competition could help to land you a dream job in engineering in the future.”
“Engineers need to be involved in the big problems facing society today; to do this we need to attract and retain high-potential individuals into the industry. The future of engineering will therefore depend on the good communication of the exciting opportunities open to those who choose a career in engineering.”
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Engineers need to be involved in the big problems facing society today; to do this we need to attract and retain high-potential individuals to the industry, and communicate the exciting opportunities of a career in engineering."