School of Architecture

Student Profiles

kelly clark

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Architecture Students

Grace Mills

When Grace finished high school she wanted to move cities for university, so she left her native Wellington for life in Dunedin. However, after being away from home, the desire to pursue architecture drew her back to Wellington. Now in her third year of her architecture degree Grace is thoroughly enjoying her studies and is happy she made the move. Read more about Grace.


Kelly Clark

After finishing high school Kelly was ready for a new challenge, so he decided to leave his hometown of Christchurch and move to Wellington to study Architecture at Victoria. "The competitive environment meant that I was pushed hard, so I learnt a lot more than I would have in a more laid-back atmosphere". Now that he has completed his Master's degree he plans to work in New Zealand for a period and then head overseas. Read more about Kelly.

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Architecture History and Theory Students

Philip Belesky

Completing a double degree is one of the most challenging study options that students’ can choose, Philip is no stranger to hard work and meets this challenge head on. The appeal of doing two degrees both in fields of the built environment sees Philip completing a degree in landscape architecture as well as a Bachelor of Arts in Architectural Studies. Now in his fourth year of study, Philip is in the final stage of completing his degrees. Read more about Philip.


Akari Kidd

Akari completed her Bachelor of Architecture degree and worked in Japan and New York before coming to Victoria, with a Victoria Master’s (by thesis) Scholarship. Akari made her decision to study architecture at Victoria after seeing the creative work of previous Architecture students. While studying at Victoria Akari has been given the opportunity to tutor students which she has found both challenging and rewarding. Read more about Akari.

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Building Science Students

Luke Newman

Originally studying towards a degree in Commerce and Administration, Luke heard about the building science degree from a friend who was taking courses in this area. It was the subjects and material that building science covered that first interested Luke. Following his passion for the building industry saw Luke changing to study building science where he is in his final year of studies. Read more about Luke.


Hayley Koerbin

Hayley has always had an interest in design and building at secondary school. Her decision to study Building Science was cemented after talking about it with a family friend who was in the engineering industry. For Hayley, studying Building Science at Victoria has given her the foundations for an opportunistic future career in the industry. Read more about Hayley.

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Interior Architecture Students

(Xuezhu) Cissy Zhang

Cissy left her native country of China in 2003 to attend high school in Christchurch and then travelled to Wellington to study Interior Architecture at Victoria in 2005. She enjoyed her discussions at Victoria with her supervisors about the deep meanings of interior architecture. Upon finishing her Master's degree she plans to use her knowledge of interior design to design her first home, start her own architectural/design firm, and travel the world. Read more about Cissy.


Wen Ting

After completing high school Wen decided to study Interior Architecture at Victoria. Wen was the winner of the Victoria Medal of Academic Excellence in 2010 for the Faculty of Architecture and Design. She was awarded First Class Honours for the Bachelors of Design degree, with a higher grade average for her four years of study than all the other First Class Honours students. Wen enjoyed doing Interior Architecture at Victoria even though it involved a lot of hard work and dedication, but she believes it was worth it. Read more about Wen.

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Landscape Architecture Students

Amy Collingbourne

Following a gap year and an exchange to France after the end of high school, Amy is currently combining her Landscape Architecture studies with French courses. Now in her second year of study, Amy is enjoying the creative side of designing spaces and presentations, as well as having discussions with tutors, and going on field trips. Read more about Amy.


Cory Manson

Cory had not heard much about Landscape Architecture until he starting thinking about what to study at university, but was drawn to it by its focus upon a combination of design, architecture and the natural environment. Now in his final year of study, Cory is confident he has made the right decision taking full advantage of what the degree has to offer. Read more about Cory.