“I feel like it's my city”
13 July 2026
Matea Bjorklund looks back on her time in Cardiff fondly, as she gets ready to undertake a PhD that will continue the research she started during her undergraduate placement year.
On July 13, Matea graduates after studying at Cardiff University for four years, completing her BSc in Physics with a professional placement year.
She came to Cardiff to study from Norway, attracted by the city and the course’s practical elements.
“I’ve always wanted to study abroad”, said Matea.
“I chose Cardiff because I wanted to study in the UK so that I wouldn’t have to learn a new language, and I was especially drawn to Wales.
“I've really enjoyed labs. I always loved how the physics course is very hands-on. You get to try things and play around with stuff. I think it helps you develop strategies for attacking difficult problems.
“It helps you accept that sometimes you cannot always get it right every time, but you can learn from your mistakes and try to be better next time.
“If you choose to study physics, you will absorb skills that you wouldn’t even have considered as something you can learn. You want to study physics because you want to understand how the world works, but then you learn logic reasoning, problem solving, and so much more.”
The course’s practical sessions fostered Matea’s interest in experimental and computational physics, which she would go on to focus on during her placement year at the ISIS Neutron and Muon Source research centre at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory.
My placement has been completely transformative for my career. Now I've got a PhD that I'm going into because of my placement, which is just amazing.
As part of her placement, Matea got the opportunity to travel to Japan to attend a conference.
“I got to network with researchers in the very niche field that I was doing my placement in.”
Also during her placement, Matea delivered a talk to over a hundred people at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory.
“It was a really big moment for me in my academic career”, Matea added.
Following her placement, Matea returned to Cardiff University’s Queen’s Buildings for a final year of study. However, even during the important Autumn exam period, she still found time to unwind, knit and explore Cardiff’s green spaces in her spare time.
“I knitted a whole sweater during the exam season last semester.”
“It's nice to switch your brain off and just do something mind-numbing, but with crochet and knitting, it is actually quite productive because you end up getting all kinds of stuff out of it.
“I love Bute Park; you can spend hours and hours just walking around.
“I feel at home in Cardiff. I'm really going to miss it.
“I feel like it's my city. Three years may sound like a long time, but it really isn’t. It’s best to fully absorb the experience.” Matea continued.
After graduating, Matea will continue the research she started in her placement year and final year project when she undertakes a PhD at University College London, rejoining the ISIS Neutron and Muon Source research centre.
I'm excited to start my PhD because I've done all my theory, I've sat all my exams, and now I can finally apply what I've learned to start my own research. I can fully immerse myself in the field I want to pursue, applied particle physics.
Share this story
It is a friendly, approachable School with a strong commitment to teaching excellence and world class research in physics and astronomy.
