Supreme award winner of the Vectorworks Secondary Schools CAD Challenge 2009, Elliot Buckley is still feeling shell-shocked about his success in the prestigious national competition.
When he was told about his win, the Tauranga Boys' College student - then in Year 11 - had been using Vectorworks for just a couple of months and was still teaching himself how to apply the software design program.
"The awards are open to students in Years 11-13," he says, "so I wascompletely taken by surprise."
Elliot has found the recognition of his design abilities even more surprising given his present focus on pure sciences - physics, chemistry and mathematics. He was planning and is still committed to a career in engineering.
"However, I am also good at graphic design," he concedes, "so I haven't altogether ruled out architecture."
A cadet in the Air Training Corps of Tauranga 16 Squadron, the 15-year-old (16 on March 6) is considering going into the RNZAF or applying to Air New Zealand to train as an engineer when he leaves school.
Whatever his career direction, Elliot will be able to demonstrate flexibility and initiative as part of his skill set.
He had been using another CAD program when he discovered Vectorworks last year. His graphic design teacher, who was encouraging but had only limited experience of a dated version of the program, handed his student a manual and urged him to "get looking".
Elliot quickly took to the software. "Vectorworks is an amazing program," he enthuses. "I started using it in the July holidays to trial the program for school use."
Within a week, he had worked his way through a quick start guide as well as several manuals supplied by Megabits Trust, the New Zealand distributor for Vectorworks.
After applying the knowledge he'd acquired to a test house, Elliot was able to give his teachers "an excellent review" of the program's suitability for practical applications.
As part of a complete refurbishment of its information and technology suite, Tauranga Boys' College has been upgrading its computers to make Vectorworks an option for students, particularly those working at a higher level.
"I was talking to students who had heard about my win and they wanted to try the software as well," Elliot says of the level of interest in the program at his school.
His prize included a compact digital camera, a 3D computer graphics visualisation book and updated software worth nearly $6000 commercially.
Although surprised by his most recent success, Elliot has notched up a long list of academic achievements and external awards. Fascinated by science and discovery, especially aircraft and flight, he is also keen on sports - notably skiing, surfing and tennis.
"I don't compete in any of these," he adds, "but last year took a coursein skiing and now can ski some expert level runs."
Elliot is looking forward to further exploring the Vectorworks program in his school's new computer suite.
"The software offers so much creative scope," he says, "and I'm keen tosee what I can come up with as my entry for this year's Secondary Schools Challenge."