Studying towards a Bachelor of Engineering with Honours
Why did you decide to do Engineering studies at UC?
I love maths and science and also the hands-on technical element that Engineering provides. Also my Dad and his three siblings and their dad all did Engineering, so that helps.
UC has one of two engineering schools in New Zealand, but I didn’t want to live in Auckland for another four years, and so came here. UC also provides an epic student experience, so that’s a bonus.
And part of that student experience must come from you staying in College House accommodation. What inspired that move?
The opportunity to meet people from all over New Zealand and form new friendships with people outside my normal group of mates was a big appeal to me when considering accommodation options for UC. Halls are renowned for this opportunity and the fun that goes along with that.
Meeting likeminded people who are doing your degree is a big bonus too. This means any help you need is most likely able to come from your mates which further strengthens those relationships formed in halls.
How have you found it so far?
The sense of community College House provides is awesome. The events run in-house mean more opportunity to get along with people you’re living with and are always enjoyable. College House also provides ample tutoring which is a major help when you are constantly slammed with assignments and tests coming up towards the end of terms.
So what’s been your favourite aspect?
Overall meeting new people had been the highlight for me, and becoming mates with people from all over the country has been great. It’s such an amazing experience where you meet people from all over New Zealand. Mum and Dad have always said Uni is a big melting pot of people from all over, and I couldn’t agree more considering I now have good friends from places I didn’t even know existed!
Has there been any challenges to life in the halls?
A challenge for me was getting into a routine. The start of the year was so busy with O-week and heaps of other house events, and so I wasn’t able to get into a good routine. This meant I had to work on my adaptability and tried to fit in my trainings, schoolwork, and fun at the same time. Finding a balance is so important especially at the start of uni, and so there have been times where I’ve had to sacrifice hanging out with mates to do uni work, but overall hasn’t been too big of a problem. Do your work first, have fun later.
What have you enjoyed about studying so far?
The flexibility of when you have to do work. This helps when designing a schedule and makes it easier when wanting to do other things like work on my health or go for a surf when it pumps. If the surfs good, I’ll drop everything and go.
Where do you hope to end up after graduating?
I don’t really know at this point, but engineering offers copious amounts of career paths to choose from. The world needs engineers!
