When Erin Tagarino was in Year Six, she experienced a turning point in her life. She says, “We had to do a kind of ‘show and tell’ presentation in class and I decided to talk about my love of art. I had no script or anything, just images on a slide presentation. It was all about what I loved to do in my spare time. I still have the marking notes our teacher gave me. She wrote things like ‘True artist’ and ‘You could do an exhibit.’ That experience inspired me to push myself.”
Up until then, Erin had considered herself ‘a pretty average student,’ but those words of encouragement helped her believe she could achieve much more. She says, “By the end of high school, I became a high honour awardee. I joined student organisations – the student council and things like that.”
Her parents were also great supporters. “They gave me opportunities they never had,” she says. “I remember Mum enrolled me in watercolour classes, and I was the youngest in the room. I got to learn more than most students my age.”
Finding her passion
A family visit to Australia (Erin’s grandparents live in Sydney) ignited her passion for architecture. “I must have been eight or nine years old. It was one of the first countries I visited outside Asia, and I was in awe of all the structures. Where I grew up in the Philippines, buildings and housing were very traditional. That’s when I began to dream of studying here,” she says.
It helped that she has grandparents in Sydney, and a cousin already staying with them. “He was at UTS, doing a degree in business and he loved the location. It’s just a single train ride from where they live and he said the facilities are great, with plenty of good places to eat.”
Of course, Erin’s decision was about more than a convenient location. She says, “When I finished high school, I was debating between UTS and a couple of other universities, but when I broke it all down, UTS College was the deciding factor. I didn’t want to wait until the next year, and I could start a Diploma of Design and Architecture mid-year there. The other unis didn’t have that option. I didn’t want to wait because my friends in the Philippines would be moving on and I’d feel left out.”
Erin took advantage of mid-year entry to the Diploma of Design and Architecture at UTS College.
So, with two weeks to organise herself after her high school graduation, she came to Sydney.
Self-discovery and growth
Meeting her first student ambassadors during Orientation was another turning point for Erin. “They were so helpful and I immediately thought, ‘I want to do that!’” she says. “I looked at how to apply and what they were looking for. I felt like I covered a lot of it because back in high school I was on the student council and did a lot of the media side of it. I can edit and do that sort of thing.”
Erin was snapped up quickly, and joining the program was a huge boost to her confidence while she adjusted to College life. “At first part of me was scared even of things like doing the normal commute on my own,” she says, “There’s not so much public transport in the Philippines. Mum drove me around a lot. But now, where I live in Parramatta it’s a 5-minute walk to the mall. Having that kind of independence made me feel a bit stressed at first, but then I learnt to lean into it. Now I can say it’s okay, I can do this on my own.”
As an international student, Erin learnt self reliance.
Learning to understand and rely on herself was one of the most valuable parts of international study for Erin. “People don’t talk so much about the emotional and mental aspect,” she says. “but you’re going to be on your own. Even for me, with family here, I’ve had to learn to be independent to a point. Self-discovery is part of the experience. My parents have said to me, ‘Oh, you’re so different now.’ I think it’s important to embrace the changes because that’s how you grow.”
Building for the people
Erin is now in third year Bachelor of Design in Architecture at UTS. “It’s busy, but I’m still happy with my choice. I still have my love for architecture,” she says. Erin’s special interest is urban development. “I think sometimes in architecture, we’ve lost that sense of building for the people,” she says. “Often now it’s for the aesthetic, or simply for money. I’m interested in projects like schools, parks, or student housing, where I can create flexible, modular designs. I want to help people and certain projects just mean more to me.”
Full-circle moment
Of all Erin’s student ambassador experiences, one memory stands out. “There was a full-circle moment. I remember back in 2024 looking at the ambassador shifts, and I saw a campus tour for my old high school. I messaged one of the managers right away and I was like, ‘That was my school!’”
Erin got the shift. “I knew some of the students. I know it meant a lot to see someone who had been in the same shoes as them. You could see the light in their eyes. They asked me really specific questions and I’m so grateful I got to be the person giving them that information. It kind of helped them see into the future.”
Being someone who cares
To anyone interested in being a student ambassador, Erin says the most important thing is to go into it for the right reasons. “It’s useful if you can edit or if you’re a good communicator because you’re either interacting with people at events or you’re creating content,” she says. “But the main thing is to understand it’s not about status or having that red jacket. There are responsibilities. You can’t really slack off because you’re representing the College. You need to be someone who really cares for people.”
Find out more about the Student Ambassador program>