Hannah Lanigan from Gorey, Co Wexford is in her third year of the Bachelor of Architecture (Hons) at SETU.
Interest in school
My interest in architecture began when I chose construction studies as a subject for my Leaving Certificate. For the project element of construction studies, I made a model of a passive house, which grew my interest in sustainability and design. I didn’t study technical graphics, art, or engineering in school, so I was under the impression that studying to become an architect would never be an option.
However, when I visited South East Technological University’s (SETU) Spring Open Day I was informed by current architecture students that I wouldn't be at any disadvantage having not studied them for my Leaving Cert.
First choice course
The Bachelor of Architecture (Hons) at SETU became my number one course on my CAO after the open day. Another factor in my decision was the course location on the Granary Campus, which is home to only architecture and architectural technology students. I also liked that SETU is close to home in Wexford, and that my older sister studied at SETU and loved it.
Class trips
The highlight of my college experience so far was our course trip abroad to Basel, Switzerland, and Mulhouse, France in semester two of my second year.
We were assigned a project focused on communal living and apartments and completed research on this abroad. After the trip, we designed our own apartment blocks on a local site in Waterford city, taking inspiration from what we learned on our trip.
Trips abroad are really important as we get to experience first-hand the work of international architects, and how we can apply their ideas to our designs. The trip was extremely beneficial and a lot of fun because our class group is extremely close-knit. As we were abroad during our two-week Easter break, many students extended their travels to other cities close by, such as Paris, Nice, Barcelona, and Strasbourg. Two friends and I took the train from Mulhouse to Paris for a few days to see the sights.
Favourite module
My favourite module so far was Visual Communications. Through this module, we learned a range of new skills such as Adobe Photoshop, FormIT modelling, and Revit. We also developed our hand drawing skills by practicing ways of adding context with people, plants, and vegetation. This module has personally been really beneficial, and I have incorporated every aspect of this module into my main design studio projects.
Help and support
Unlike a lot of courses in other colleges, I really enjoy how I can create a bond with all my lecturers. We aren’t just numbers in a massive lecture theatre and our lecturers know us all by name. SETU lecturers are always willing to help with any issues we are facing.
In second year, we were assigned final-year architecture students, who visited our class once a week to answer any questions we had and encourage us to develop our ideas further. They taught us tips and tricks they picked up in their five years of study and helped us prepare for our final ‘crit’ presentations at the end of the semester.
It was extremely beneficial to work with the fifth years and helpful to know that they were there if we needed any extra help or had any questions.
My advice
Make sure you know and understand what the course entails. Have a look at the modules before you begin to make sure what you will be studying actually interests you.
