Fin Underhill: My journey to Cranfield as a Brian Meredith Scholar

Hi, I’m Fin! I’m from Yeovil, UK and I’m studying Advanced Heat Engineering MSc.

Cranfield University stood out as the best opportunity for me to pursue my ambition with the brilliant academics and their extensive work in green engineering solutions. I’ve always dreamed of a decarbonised future and been fascinated by nuclear power since I came upon it, but I was unable to fund my course.

I applied anyway, because I wouldn’t sleep without knowing that I tried to reach as high as I could. Thankfully I was given an offer! The Brian Meredith Net Zero Scholarship was the reason I could join my now-fellow students.

What did you study before coming to Cranfield?

My educational history has felt difficult and turbulent; after attending college I was convinced that I was not capable of success. My grades were far from what was predicted by both academia and me.

After years of applying, I was fortunately offered a place to study a BEng Mechanical Engineering at Bournemouth University where I had the chance to, in my eyes, redeem myself.

I turned my attitude and my education around and achieved a First Class Degree. I knew I wanted to put the knowledge from my degree into practice and prove that I could be useful, so I applied for a role in Mechanical Design Consultancy, with a company called Amtek. I tempered my studies into experience and felt proud to have applied myself.

Why did you choose to study Advanced Heat Engineering? 

I chose this course because, when I look around, all I see is the constant human drive for improvement. And that is excellent! But this drive demands energy, and I have always believed that balance is crucial. Now, the unbalancing rate at which humans are advancing is becoming so rapid that we are destroying the only planet that puts up with us.  

So, thanks to the extraordinary generosity from Green Future Investments Ltd, I have been able to make it my personal mission to help generate the clean and sustainable energy we need to continue enjoying the things we love. I believe the energy will come from renewables, nuclear power and cleaner fossil fuels. This will create a resilient, and flexible energy mix, but what matters most is that we all use our energy considerately and for a good purpose.  

What do you hope to achieve at Cranfield? 

What I hope to learn from my experience at Cranfield University is the steps we have to take, as engineers and as people living in a shared atmosphere, to secure a future where our grandchildren can enjoy nature as we have. 

I’m so grateful for what the Brian Meredith Net Zero Scholarship has provided for me, and I look forward to continuing the vision that Brian Meredith felt so passionately about.