Okechukwu Livinus Obiegbu

On completion of my bachelor’s degree in Geology and Exploration Geophysics at Ebonyi State University, Nigeria, I decided to proceed to complete a master’s degree in the United Kingdom.

The time I spent studying at Cardiff University was amazing and I did enjoy every bit of it. We were exposed to sound academic lecturers who took their time to ensure we understood what was taught by providing multiple course assessments on modules offered. Learning was very interactive and engaging. I also volunteered as a postgraduate executive representative at the student union and welcomed new students from Nigeria at the Cardiff University Fresher's Fair.

Professional placement

As part of my degree requisites, I got a 6-month placement at WesternGeco in 2010, where I developed different modelling applications in ARCGIS and MATLAB to produce geomorphological maps and performed remote sensing and image analysis and integrated geomorphological data for broad assessment of engineering hazards related to water, structural and environmental issues. The first stage of the course at Cardiff University was instrumental in achieving this.

After my graduation, I was awarded the 2nd overall Young Geologist of the Year 2011 after an excellent presentation of my dissertation at the Geological Society Southern Wales competition.

Graduate career

I worked briefly with Conduit and First Source between October 2010 and February 2013, where my transferable skills module studied at Cardiff University played a vital role in enabling me to adapt to different work environments. In May 2013, I began working as an Environmental Consultant with Sangdaf Nigeria Limited where I prepared environmental management plans for a petrochemical facility and provided solutions to eliminating environmental and municipal waste problems and conducted environmental scoping and baseline studies for clients.

Career journey

Since 2014, I have been working with DLK Oil & Gas Limited where my role is to provide technical and administrative approaches, plan and develop remediation models, manage and oversee remediation of contaminated soils and groundwater to completion as well as prepare reports and direct field operations. I also serve as a Consulting Geoscientist (part-time) with Leudrill Geoservices Ltd.

As an alumnus, I seek to improve the experience for students at Cardiff University through providing my experiences as a student and as a graduate. I will without doubt recommend the Applied Environmental Geology course at Cardiff University.