Eial always had a passion for design, but it wasn’t until he visited the University of Melbourne that he discovered his love for architecture – and saw where this creative, ever-evolving discipline could lead.
In Argentina, football is a national pastime that provided the background for Eial’s interest in designing products like football boots and jerseys. The chance to combine his interest in sports with his creative side led him to investigate the design processes behind these products. After studying industrial design, Eial was looking for a more specific career path that matched his unique passions and interests.
“I didn’t want to end up working in a field that I wasn't passionate about. I realised that the industrial design field didn’t offer the level of specialisation and passion I wanted, and I knew that finding a job that aligned perfectly with my interests would be challenging.”
While he trained for football throughout his university studies, eventually architecture caught his attention at a careers expo, and he decided to return to university to explore his options in the Bachelor of Design.
“I thought that you had to study engineering to be an architect, because that’s how it is in Argentina but looking into it, architecture was something that I really was interested in.”
With the Bachelor of Design, Eial could explore engineering and architecture subjects without the pressure of choosing his major in the first semester. “It was funny, because the first thing my mum told me when we got home was that she always thought I was going to be an architect.”
While Eial’s mum may have always suspected he would become an architect, Eial wanted to explore his interests across different disciplines, and of course maintain his football skills. The Melbourne curriculum allowed him to take subjects that aligned with his career goals, while exploring interests in complementary and contrasting study areas. For example, taking a breadth subject in sports coaching meant Eial could enhance his leadership abilities, and a breadth subject in Italian challenged him to improve his communication skills. This cross-disciplinary approach to learning enables students like Eial to unlock new ways of thinking and prepare for a wide range of professions.
With the Bachelor of Design, Eial could explore engineering and architecture subjects without the pressure of choosing his major in the first semester.
The Melbourne curriculum is more than just the subjects you choose. It’s about learning how to approach problems with curiosity and creativity. For Eial, he recalls an assignment where he was supposed to undertake a project in a predetermined way; however, he decided to take the time to consider whether there might be a more innovative approach – and implemented that instead.
“I was very aware that they might just fail me on it, but when the tutors saw the work, they changed the structure and got me to do a mini lecture to explain what I’d done. They were able to take on feedback and find different ways to work with students. I think that’s something every single person has to learn to deal with, where you learn how to work with people and learn how to go about things.”
This method of continual learning and refining – commonly known as the iterative process – is a core approach to design thinking. At Melbourne, students gain first-hand experience of this within studio classes, where they’re able to present their work to receive and give feedback. This immersive, collaborative learning environment has helped Eial see more than just what problems to tackle, but find creative ways to go about it.
As Eial rounds out his third year, he’s looking forward to building on what he’s learned in his undergraduate studies. “University provides you with a whole range of different experiences, and since I plan to go on to a Master of Architecture, I’ll be able to explore the different architectural styles. I think because it’s a career path where I can see where I’m going, I know that there’s a lot of jobs that are exactly what I want.”
With these goals in mind, Eial is excited about how studying design can set him up for his future career in architecture. He has plans to complete a number of internships and gain the relevant experience in the workforce. He’s looking forward to taking the iterative process he’s worked with throughout his Bachelor of Design and seeing how he can apply it beyond the studio.
Melbourne's immersive, collaborative learning environment has helped Eial see more than just what problems to tackle, but find creative ways to go about it.