well, one point u should be aware is that newcastle (UK) architecture school has quite a good reputation, not to be confused with the australian one. not that newcastle australia is bad, just that newcastle UK's reputation might overshadow its aussie counterpart.

ur dad is not trying to scare u. architecture demands alot from u, and it's not just for assignments or academic advancements, but also for u to develop ur social and people skills, leadership, situational awareness as well as being up-to-date with what goes on around u. this may cause people to resort to something out of their normal habits - people started smoking, drinking, become rebellious and so on.

so what type of mind would be suitable for architecture? well, i can only advise u to be very, very open yet strong minded. 1st year is one of the hardest, bcoz this is the "make-or-break" point, where we sort out those who're not suitable and tell them straight in the face to better find something else to do for a living. in 1st year, u will also go through a sort of mind-bending experience. u will be exposed to extremely different way of learning, some have dub it as "a process to unlearn what u've learned, and reprogramme ur mind entirely the other way around".

but it's not a process where u get stuck on ur table studying. no way. architects are social beasts. clubbing, hanging out and socializing are parts and parcel of the architecture game. if u're the sort of person who cant manage between studying and fun, better not be sucked into this world.

thou hath been warned.

@mars16
which uni you plan to go?