Luke Gil ’25 has always loved making art. Growing up, he often made art with his mom, a creative person who encouraged his interests. When he got older, he took art classes in high school and around his sophomore year, Gil began looking into majoring in architecture in college.
“I’ve always wanted to do something related to making art and I felt like architecture was a good middle ground of being able to do and create something meaningful within the infrastructure of society,” says Gil.
Gil enjoys the basic elements of pencil sketching and watercolor or other painting, which fits with the hand-drawing and painting required of architecture majors at Notre Dame. The program stood out to Gil for other reasons too.
“Architecture here is unique in that it's completely focused on classical and traditional architecture, which is something I don't really see or that's not really in many other programs…and study abroad in Rome was very [attractive. Notre Dame had] the whole picture,” says Gil.
In his first semester, Gil, like other architecture intents, took Graphics I: Drawing and he;s taking Graphics II this semester, both of which help students develop the drawing skills necessary to be successful in “design studio” in their sophomore year. (Learn about the courses an architecture student takes each year.)
Outside of the classroom, Gil has had fun exploring the cultural clubs on campus. He participated in the First Year Retreat sponsored by the Asian-American Association (AAA) and he performed in Asian Allure, the AAA’s annual cultural showcase. With a group of other students, he performed a traditional Filipino dance, and he was also part of a traditional Korean drumming performance.
Gil is also involved in the Themed Entertainment Association at Notre Dame (TEA), a community of students who are interested in pursuing a career in the themed entertainment industry. “I’ve always been a big fan of Disney,” says Gil. “And it’s one of my dreams to work at Disney.”
Check out the video above to learn more about Gil’s first year at Notre Dame.
Learn More
- Check out the architecture major at Notre Dame.
- Watch the previous First-Year Journey: Lena Dougherty '25, Pre-Professional Studies Major and Musical Theater Aficionado
Originally published by at admissions.nd.edu on March 23, 2022.