Ratbek Zhapparov

Kyzylorda’s native, Ratbek has already graduated from the Nazarbayev University. In the summer of 2015, a sophomore in Electrical Engineering and Electronics, School of Engineering, he won a grant from the Shakhmardan Yessenov Foundation.  With it, he went to the University of Texas at Austin, to undertake a research under the guidance of Dr. Robert W. Heath Jr.

1. Why did you choose to specialize in Electrical Engineering?
I’m studying signal processing, which is a part of EE. Using the information, that some consider negligible, the signal processing can solve many technical problems and make life easier for people. I’m positive that in the near future there will be quite many new inventions in the field.

 2. What was most difficult in the competition for the internship?
Back then I was a sophomore and I had to compete with the students of the third and fourth year, and frankly, it was not such an easy task to me at all, for they had a lot more research experience then I. In addition, the fact of the presence of a psychologist during the contest discomforted me to a certain degree. Overall though it was a unique experience with a very interesting and exciting selection process.

3. What do you remember the most in the American internship besides the scientific work?
Meeting new people was probably the most interesting part. All the students in my group were doctors (PhD) or postdocs, and I was the only bachelor. Their story and experience were extremely educational, because then I was just at the beginning of my journey into academic research.

4. What’s the outcome of the internship for you personally?
It helped me to obtain research skills and move forward as a scientist. Thanks to this internship, I was accepted for another one in King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST) in Saudi Arabia the next year, 2016. I think that without the internship, I would not have been competitive enough in the sea of thousands of applicants for doctoral studies in the United States. In August 2017, I’m going back to the University of Texas at Austin to continue my education – I was awarded a full scholarship.