Nenad Drašković
Bosnia and Herzegovina

"Video sessions were very helpful with all the assistance and patience that came from the lecturers."

While working as an architect, Nenad Drašković participated in the online course Advanced Zero Energy Design. Read about his experience.

What was your motivation for enrolling in this course/program?
The main reason why I attended this course is to start my own architectural studio for designing net-zero energy buildings after I won third prize in the competition for the business plan, which was organized by the local development agency (RARS). It was the road to an unconventional way of learning new materials, but everything turned out well in the end.

How did/will this course impact your career or life?
This course changes the way I perceive architectural design because now I experience buildings as more man-like living organisms, rather than before in terms of architectural form and function. I hope that gaining a certificate from this course will help me to start an independent career as an architectural designer for net-zero energy buildings and bring me more professional experiences, contacts, and collaborations in the future.

How was your experience learning online?
Even though English is the second language that I am using I had to put in strong concentration during video lessons at the beginning of every week in order to decrease potential mistakes. But quizzes had some tricky questions, and some extra attention is needed on those occasions. Video sessions were very helpful with all the assistance and patience that came from the lecturers, but I have to point out that I had great communication with lecturers through e-mail correspondence, and every possible question was answered through video sessions and e-mail messages. And of course, great learning material in form of modules, scripts, and books was very helpful.

What advice would you give someone who is thinking of taking a similar course?
I would definitely advise future students to think about the possibility to take as much as possible free time during attending this course, especially from the third week. Because the average student (like I am) needs some extra time to acquire new knowledge and perform all the weekly tasks in the allotted time.