New starter Olivia shares first-week impressions of Bond

Olivia Sharpe, 18, from the Hunter Valley is new to Bond this semester and is studying a Bachelor of Sustainable Environments and Planning.

Her first visit to the Gold Coast campus came when she was just eight years old with her sister Kimberley, who graduated from Bond with a Bachelor of Laws in 2006.

“Kimberley brought me with her to campus and I just knew I wanted to come here,” Olivia said.

“She has such amazing memories of her time here and is still in contact with many friends and colleagues to this day,” she said.

“You don’t realise the ‘community’ feel Bond has until you go to other universities – I visited Newcastle University and it was just so big, with so many people, it made me feel quite distanced.

“Bond feels familiar, it’s such a great, positive environment and everyone is really friendly and   welcoming.

“In fact in my first week of classes I got lost trying to find my tutorial and two people stopped me and asked if I needed help; one even offered to walk me to my next class.

“I was an hour early to every class, not because I was scared of getting lost or being late, I was just really excited!”

“I’ve already met people from all over Australia and all over the world, and when I walked into my first tutorial with just 10 students in the class, I relaxed, we shared a laugh and I knew instantly that Bond was right for me,” she said.

Olivia has also been very impressed with Bond’s world-renowned academics.

“You can literally feel their passion for their subject matter,” she said.

“For me, the Beyond Bond lecture brought to life what Bond is all about – internships, competitions, volunteering, mentoring, events and workshops - I loved it.

“There are so many opportunities for me here outside the classroom, I can’t wait to be part of them.

“I was very excited about getting involved in the clubs at club sign-up – I’ve already signed up to a dozen clubs - and I can’t wait to join the Student Ambassador Association.”