Task 2: My Design Career

As a young child I was always interested in building objects and exploring my creativity, whether it was playing with Lego, painting or drawing. I was a very curious child, always questioning the motives behind objects and their purpose. I would constantly destroy birthday and Christmas presents, just to see what was going on the inside of the toys, much to the dissatisfaction of my parents. As time passed and I grew older, that love never really changed, the only difference was that I was able to find new endeavours to promote my abilities. High school was a major contributor to the decisions that ultimately influenced my choice to undertake Industrial Design.

Through years 7 and 8 we were required to take woodwork, which I grew very fond of as it allowed me to physically create objects, combining technical precision with creative flair. This practical based design was different to what I had experienced before in primary school, it took patience, ingenuity, technical know how to fully create an object that one could be proud of designing. However it was in year 9 and 10 that I began to discover the wonderful world of CAD and its infinite possibilities. I was drawn to its versatility in being able to create three dimensional representations of objects on the computer, then being able to bring them to life through renderings. My fondness of CAD led me to choose Industrial Technology Graphics as a HSC subject. Through my HSC course I experimented with more complex CAD programs that once mastered allowed me to create realistic objects. Many of my teachers would comment on the time I spent on my HSC major work, saying that if I spent as much time on other subjects as I did in Graphics, my results could have been outstanding. But it was the puzzle like complexity, methodical thinking and realisation that when I was finished, I could be proud of my design, that spurred me on to spend what some would say a ridiculous amount of time focusing on one subject. It was at this stage during my senior years that I decided to pursue a career that involved me using and expanding my knowledge of CAD programs.

In the end undertaking a Bachelor of Industrial Design at UNSW was the most logical choice for me to reach my career goals. I was interested in the Faculty of Built Environment as a whole, and I was particularly drawn to its Architecture and Landscape programs, but ultimately it was Industrial Design that I believed to be a better fit, and that would allow me to explore and expand my current knowledge. However it must be said that my career ambitions have slightly changed. Recently I’ve been more interested in the product development stage and marketing techniques involved in selling a product, so if it seems that becoming an industrial designer is not for me, I would still like to participate in a similar field such as marketing or product development.