My name is Jann, and I am from Germany.
I studied General Engineering Sciences with a major in Mechatronics at the University of Technology Hamburg (TU Hamburg)
I was quite happy at TU Hamburg, so the normal plan was to just do my master’s degree there. But once I heard about JEMARO, its international outlook and the research possibilities, I knew that I had to try. Honestly, I did not really believe that I would be accepted.
The best courses for me were “Artificial Intelligence” and “Artificial Intelligence for Robotics”. The professors explained quite vividly and gave us real live coding examples. AI will revolutionise the way we live, work and perceive the world, so it is great to have heads start in this area.
I want to use Computer Vision and Machine Learning to do the motion planning of a robotic arm in order to pick fruits in a semi-chaotic environment, like a real-live field.
I chose Centrale Nantes because it has a particularly international outlook and a good reputation. I studied French in high school, hence I wanted to improve my language skills as well. Furthermore, Nantes is an exciting city with a great cultural scene.
The French skip the line very often, especially at the university restaurant. Being from a country that values structure and order, that required quite some adjustment on my side. Also, in France the breakfast consists of way sweeter food than in Germany, which required some adaptation. In Japan, it was mainly the enormous amount of rice that comes with a lot of dishes. Every now and then I go and get western food, in order to counterbalance that.
Especially in the beginning, the cultural differences are enormous inside the group, due to completely different origins of the students. You definitely need to self reflect and communicate, but the effort is rewarded with finding very good friends, that I definitely will stay in touch with even after the programme.
While I write these lines, I have just begun my second year of JEMARO in Tokyo. Currently I am uncertain, but tend towards a PhD in France, or returning to my home country, Germany, to do a R&D job.
Frankly, JEMARO was one of the best decisions of my life. If you are interested in strong international experiences and want a robotics degree that teaches a great balance of theoretical background and hands-on skills: This is the degree for you!
