Abe Watson's passion for theatre has guided his path from an early age, from working with his local theatre company in Bendigo to his role as Artistic Operations Manager within the University of Melbourne.
Studying on exchange in Paris gave him the invaluable chance to hone his language skills in a fully immersive environment – and blending his creative energies with the marketing expertise from his BA has helped Abe take on challenges of all sizes.
Thinking about uni
I had spoken to a lot of friends that had gone through [the University of Melbourne] who all had really positive experiences. It was a pretty amazing place to study, I knew the calibre of the staff, so I think that's why I chose the university overall – and I'm glad I did.
Starting Arts
What I most enjoyed about French was that community, the small class sizes ... coming together for the love of a culture. There is nothing better than full immersion – so that third-year exchange to France is really where I developed many more skills in the language and came back with a much better proficiency.
Launching my career
Take your time and appreciate the flexibility of the study. If you have an opportunity to study abroad or go on exchange, do it. If you need to underload your degree because an amazing work opportunity comes up, do it. There is no set pathway that says, 'Three years, you must finish this degree.