2017: Christopher Chen

Bachelor of Industrial Design (Honours) student, Christopher Chen made the most of his Milan-Melbourne Exchange Program Scholarship, using his semester abroad as a chance to make connections across Europe.

“In August 2017, I had the privilege of undertaking one semester of study at the world-renowned Politecnico di Milano, with the support and generosity of the Annemarie and Arturo Gandioli-Fumagalli Foundation.

“The Politecnico di Milano has a diverse selection of design studies and I took part in four courses during my time in Milan, each focusing on a different field: Interaction, Service, Lighting and a Design Studio. These gave me an opportunity to work on a broad range of team-oriented tasks and enabled me to meet, collaborate and work with students from Milan and those on exchange from various universities.

“It also led to me making friends across Europe, many of whom I keep in contact with or who have since come to visit and travel with me on this side of the globe. In addition to study, I visited a total of nine countries and made the most of every spare moment I could, using long weekends to travel and learn. Europe is an extraordinary place for art, design and of course history, with another country, culture and language only a short journey away.

“This was a momentous opportunity and I implore future students considering study abroad, or those who have already decided to take the leap, to make the absolute most of your time. Milan is a city full of style, charm and incredible food.  Va bene, divertiti.”