Luke Mcleod

Game Developer, CONICAL
Bachelor of Design Te Tohu Paetahi mō te Hoahoa in Animation, Visual Effects and Game Design with a minor in Motion Capture

He loved working on films and videos games as part of his studies, says Luke Mcleod who studied animation, visual effects and game design and is proud of graduating as the top digital design student, with his final-year project being a finalist in the New Zealand Best Awards.

“I never really knew what I wanted to do when I left high school, but my passion for design and creating things led me to this degree where I got to work on films, create video games and perform motion capture. This was all fuelling my creativity.

“The best part of my studies was staying up late on campus with friends, hanging in the computer labs and working on our projects together. I loved having access to an abundance of new technologies and resources, with heaps of fun learning opportunities. Learning all the new programs and software that I had never even heard of was a bit of a challenge when I arrived at AUT, but the staff were super helpful.”

From Gisborne to Auckland
Originally from Gisborne, Luke was grateful to receive an AUT Welcome to Auckland Scholarship to make his move to Auckland and uni life a bit smoother.

“The AUT Welcome to Auckland Scholarship supported me through my first year of staying in student accommodation, and supported me through all three of my years here at AUT by partially covering my course fees. This took a lot of stress off; I didn’t need to worry about money and could focus more on my studies.”

Living in student accommodation was the best part of student life for him.

“I stayed at Te Āhuru Mayoral Drive Student Accommodation at the AUT City Campus, which was my favourite part of coming to university because it enabled me to meet so many new people and form great friendships.”

Advice for other students
Luke’s advice for other students is simple: just have fun!

“Your time at university goes by too fast, so make the most of the friends and opportunities you get here.”

He would highly recommend AUT to others.

“AUT is a great place for study, not only for the great courses they offer but also for the opportunities they provide to set students up for their future careers.”