Profile

I am a Research & Development Technical Consultant at Leyton UK, helping companies of different sizes and from different technical industries, receive incentives from HMRC for any activities they might undertake.

I finished my PhD in Electronic Engineering at the University of Kent, Canterbury. I am originally from Romania, and moved to UK in 2012, when I got a scholarship for a masters program at the University of Kent.

I do a lot of volunteering work, such as various STEM outreach events, as well as organising different conferences, student mentoring and so on. I work closely with Primary Engineer Leaders Award organising various events to encourage young people to get into engineering. Also, this is my second time being part of I’m an Engineer, three years after I participated in I’m an Engineer, get me out of here! (the robotics zone).

As hobbies that are not related to my work, I have recently discovered a passion for calligraphy, which I found very relaxing and satisfying. I love visiting places and I always try to find time to visit someplace new every time. I love watching films and TV shows. But my favourite way of relaxing is in a coffee shop with a nice cup of coffee.

I work with companies from different industries to help them get incentives from HMRC for various research and development activities they might undertake, through the R&D Tax Relief Scheme.

Prior to this I worked with humanoid robots and their implementation in the real world. I started on an European project called COALAS (COgnitive Assisted Living Ambient System), in which a NAO robot was an assistant to a disabled person. The robot had the ability to detect if someone has fallen and call for help when needed, as well as communicating with a robotic wheelchair and being able to control it.

In the summer of 2016, I started using our three robots in school for teaching purposes. Depending on the age group of the students and on the nature of the session, we can offer either and interactive session in which the students can build tangram puzzles and the robot then recognises them, programming session (drag and drop, or coding), lectures, or demonstrations.

I am an active STEM ambassador for STEMLearning. Through these organisations, I got involved in different events, such as talks for the Big Bang Fair, Primary Engineer LEADERS AWARD, LEGO competitions, and many more.

I was one of the main organisers for Teacher In-Service Program (TISP), with our first event taking place in October 2016 in 15 countries (in Europe, Africa, and Middle East). I am also a TISP Champion which allows me to deliver TISP workshops. A volunteer can be a TISP champion if they get trained by the IEEE (Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineering)

I get to talk to various companies in different fields and get exposed to various state of the art technologies.

On a typical day at work, I am either in clients meetings or writing technical applications for our clients. Furthermore, as part of the Corporate Social Responsibility committee, I get involved in various fundraising events, STEM outreach events, and other events that can help our society and the environment.

This is how a normal day looks for me

Open Day at the University of Kent