Liam Morell

Graduate Structural Engineer, Building Structures, WSP
Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) in Construction Engineering

He has always had a passion for designing things, says Liam Morell who came to AUT to study construction engineering and is now a graduate structural engineer at WSP.

“I originally wanted to be an architect throughout high school, however towards my final couple of years and after attending some university open days in Year 12, I decided that being more analytical than creative and being mathematically minded, engineering was for me.”

After carefully weighing up his study options, Liam picked AUT after attending many different university open days in both Year 12 and 13.

“The deciding factor for me was the more hands-on, relevant, project-based teaching philosophy that AUT promotes. I liked the idea of being able to get hands on with software and modern means of engineering.

“Our final-year industry project was one of the highlights of my time at AUT. It felt rewarding that we had finally got to the stage where we, as a team, could produce a report and a design. That was essentially getting a taste of all the different engineering consultancy sectors in one university project.”

Making connections
Throughout his studies he loved connecting with classmates who had similarly aligned goals, says Liam who is proud of receiving the HERA Excellence Award as the top graduand in the Bachelor of Engineering (Honours) in Construction Engineering.

“Many of my friends outside of university had diverse goals, whereas meeting friends in my degree who were driven to achieve academically in engineering helped to push me to where I got to. Without them, I would have never achieved what I have.”

He also appreciated the lecturers he met during his time at AUT.

“Another highlight for me was how helpful and insightful my lecturers were, especially in my last two years when I had lecturers who are specialists in the structural engineering sector; a sector I had an interest in. I was able to learn and get explanations about topics even outside of the scope of the course, which was rewarding and interesting.”

Advice for other students
Choose a path that interests you and go for it, Liam advises other students.

“Each engineering discipline has such a wide range of career options – if you have a passion for something niche, there’s a space for you in the industry. There’s always more to learn, and even as an experienced structural engineer there’s more to learn in the ever-evolving industry.”

Turn up to every lecture and interact and get involved, he adds.

“You only get one opportunity to attend uni. Watching a recording of a lecture weeks later when you need to cram before exams or chilling in bed watching it, doesn’t help build understanding of the topic.

“Each year builds on the previous year’s knowledge, so having understood it massively helps in comprehending the next year’s learnings. The lightbulb moment for me was when I was in my final year – I remember sitting in one of my lectures and working out in my head that all these seemingly meaningless values and equations we had learnt in previous years were interlinking and were part of a large process.”