Scarlette Oliver
3rd-year student, Bachelor of Design Te Tohu Paetahi mō te Hoahoa in Spatial and Interior Design with minors in Digital Fabrication & Temporary Practices / Temporary Publics
The strong studio culture is what makes AUT’s spatial and interior design degree unique, says Scarlette Oliver who is in the final year of her degree.
“From my first year, I developed strong relationships with my peers in class. The structure of the courses makes it easy for us to constantly speak to one another. As we all have similar interests, we talk about work, trading ideas and critiques to help develop each other’s projects. This eventually led to strong friendships, and one of my favourite times is when we as a group go to get matcha at our favourite café between classes or get celebratory dinner together after our final presentations.
“It’s a great place to find likeminded people in your classes or meet people from other design majors in the labs. Everyone is committed, passionate and interested in the development of your designs. It’s a hub for creativity, critical thinking, conversation and freedom of expression.”
She is also grateful for the art and design staff who have guided her through the years.
“A big thanks to Dr Lucy Meyle and Dr Emily O’Hara who were not only my first lecturers at university, but also set up such a fun atmosphere, accompanied by some heavy critical thinking. They’ve probably seen me grow through the years and it’s thanks to them I’ve developed so much as a person and designer. The digital fabrication, wet lab and workshop technicians have also all accompanied me through my learning; teaching me new skills with passion and enthusiasm. My projects were possible because of their support, and when I graduate I’ll miss the constant opportunities the labs have given me.”
Growing as a designer and a person
Scarlette says she can see how much she has grown over the past three years.
“As a third-year student, I enjoy seeing how I’ve developed as a designer. I started studying spatial and interior design unsure if it was right for me, but now I can definitely say I love it and all it has given me. Spatial design let me explore different processes like ceramics and 3D fabrication to really see where my interests and strengths lie.”
What she is most proud of is her growth as both a designer and a person.
“While I’m happy for my great grades, I’m even more happy about the passion I’ve grown for a career in this field. While projects can be stressful, I love talking about design, thinking about design, seeing design every day. In every project I learned new skills and over time I learned who I am as a designer, who I want to be and where my place is in the world. I’m proud to be the person I became due to this major – a student, classmate, student representative, designer and an individual.”
Advice for other students
Scarlette’s advice for other students is simple: trust the process and believe that you can do it.
“The first year at uni is always daunting because you feel like you don’t know what you're doing, and you don't know if this is the right path you should take. I believe that if you like aspects of what you’re studying, trust the process. Over time, that questioning feeling will turn into passion and you’ll learn those skills you don’t yet know. And in the end, after a bit of time, if you still feel this questioning worry, it’s ok to reflect and turn back till you find exactly what you can be passionate about.”
She herself knows all too well about that questioning feeling, and admits that at first she wasn’t sure if she had the technique and skills to do well in her major.
“Starting spatial design not knowing how to approach a brief, or how to do 3D models or physical models worried me and constantly stressed me out. But over time that worry went away. The more I participated in class, and engaged with my peers and lecturers, the more I learned the techniques I felt like I lacked. The constant support of my classmates and the push from my lecturers dissipated my worries.”
