Maria Skak Vestergaard Larsen is a Production Engineer at the company NKT Photonics. She graduated from the Niels Bohr Institute, University of Copenhagen in December of 2020 with a master’s degree in quantum physics.
Please give a description of the work you do in your current position.
One of my most important tasks as a production engineer is to support the technicians who assemble the various components that go into the fiber-based laser systems that are part of the product catalog at NKT Photonics. If the technicians discover an issue related to quality, inventory or something else, it is my job to provide technical support and follow-up with the relevant departments and make sure the problem is solved. I also work on documenting the various processes to ensure consistent quality and optimize production flow.
My job also involves developing and maintaining optical setups used for testing the lasers. Here I work closely with the R&D department as they have a lot of knowledge about how to test for the parameters that are relevant to the customers.
What motivated you to study physics or engineering in the first place?
I remember being excited about physics ever since primary school and learning about magnetism, atom models and radioactivity. I was curious about how the world worked and excited to do my homework. Then in high school, I learned about particle physics and thought I would become a particle physicist at CERN.
I went to an ‘open house’ event at UCPH where I met two female students who talked enthusiastically about studying physics as well as the camaraderie in the physics program – and I thought: that could be me!
What made you decide to pursue a career in the private industry?
When I finished my Master’s degree, I had a desire for a change in environment. I had been in school for a long time with no breaks and wanted to see how I could apply my physics knowledge in ‘the real world’.
I applied for jobs mainly in the private sector since that is where most of the options were, but I did also look at jobs in the public sector.
How do you use the skills you learned as a physicist or engineer in your work?
Both the theoretical knowledge I learned from the optics courses and the practical skills I gained during my master’s project working in an optics lab are absolutely essential for my current job where optics is the foundation of what we do.
At the same time my physics education provided me with general skills like the ability to acquire new knowledge and break down complex problems as well as not being scared to dive into complicated subjects, which is just as valuable in my work. I would be able to take those with me if I ever decided to pursue a field outside of optics.
What does being a physicist mean to you?
I think a physicist is someone who works to understand a part of the world using math and science – could be anything from the largest phenomena to the smallest parts. Pretty cool stuff.
What advice would you give to young people (in particular women and minorities) with a background in physics who would like to pursue a career in the private industry?
Try not to limit your options when looking for jobs. Even if a company does not specify that they are looking for a physicist, you might still fit well into the role. Try to understand what problems they are looking to solve, and how your skills can help them with that. And remember that you do not need to tick all the boxes in the job ad – you are skilled at learning new things.
Publication date: May 29th, 2024
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