Industry and education helping to prepare young people for work

A growing level of collaboration between the business sector and third level institutions is helping to prepare the nation’s young people more adequately for their entry into the world of work, it has been revealed.

Third level students at the National University of Ireland, Galway (NUIG) recently benefitted from one such initiative, which saw 40 of the university’s students taking time out from their studies to meet up with mentors from a range of national and international industries and professions.

Students were given the opportunity to have one-to-one meetings with the mentors during the event, with the professionals able to pass on their wisdom and experience to the next generation of possible business leaders and professionals.

Keith Rynhart, a second-year undergraduate at NUIG studying for a Bachelor of Commerce in accounting, said: “The career mentoring session was a wonderful experience; it really helped me clarify the path that I wish to take in the future and make some contacts in the business world.”

Initiatives such as this are something that could prove extremely beneficial in the years ahead, as the growing level of competition among graduates and in the jobs market in general is making it harder for young people to find employment.

Dr Emer Mulligan, head of the School of Business and Economics at NUIG, commented: “We are delighted to once again host these career mentoring events. This initiative highlights the school’s … commitment to preparing its students for careers in the real world.”

Moreover, the government is also helping to promote greater connections between higher education institutions and the technology sector, after it announced last month the allocation of EUR 5.5 million in annual funding over the next four years for the second phase of the Technology Transfer Strengthening Initiative.

Minister for Research & Innovation Sean Sherlock claimed the programme aims to deliver improved work and employment prospects across the country and greater revenues for the economy, while boosting the number of individuals embarking on careers in the high technology industry.

Irish Independent

Third-level scholarships that give athletes a sporting chance

Third-level scholarships that give athletes a sporting chance

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As Christmas approaches, college open days end for the moment. Yesterday, Waterford Institute of Technology (WIT) held its annual open day, and the next open day, RCSI’s for undergraduate applicants, is on January 4.

Waterford Institute of Technology is one of the largest institutes of technology in the country. It offers about 35 courses at Level 8, and 25 at Levels 7 and 6. Its Level 8 honours degree courses include architecture, construction management, engineering, accounting, business, exercise and health studies, hospitality management, law, music, nursing, sciences, arts, applied social studies, agriculture and many more. At Level 7, its courses include recreation and sports management, which can lead to a honours degree.

For a full list of WIT’s courses, check with the CAO handbook or website, or WIT’s own website, at www.wit.ie

Sports degrees are popular in any college that offers them. UCD, UL, DCU, Limerick IT, IT Blanchardstown, IT Tralee, Waterford IT, Athlone IT, Cork IT, IT Carlow, IT Sligo, Letterkenny IT, Dundalk IT and GMIT (Castlebar) all offer sports related degrees. NUI Galway offers a sports and exercise engineering degree, leading directly to a fifth-year Master’s degree in Engineering.

Competition is keen for physical education courses. Graduates qualify as teachers, usually with a second subject. UCC, DCU, and UL offer such courses.

The University of Limerick plays an important role in Irish sport. Over 600 students are enrolled on its sports related programmes.

Last week’s column referred to sport scholarships in third-level colleges, but could only touch on some of what is available. Students interested in sports scholarships should check on the website of the college that interests them for details.

Benefits of the NUI Galway sports scholarship include a subsistence grant, coaching, medical and physiotherapy support, performance nutrition and performance psychology, strength and conditioning as well as performance planning and mentoring. Each scholarship is built around the individual’s needs. NUI Galway awarded 32 new students with Sports Scholarships this year.

About 20 sports scholarships are awarded each year in IT Sligo. Scholarships can be awarded to students in any sport.

Meanwhile, as December reaches the halfway mark, applicants to CAO should remember that the normal closing date is February 1. Non-standard applicants should not leave things to the last minute, as they may be required to provide additional information.

Q Who is considered a non-standard applicant?

A Non-standard applicants are those presenting with qualifications additional to or other than recent Irish Leaving Certificate results. They must complete page three of the CAO application form (or the equivalent section of the online application process), under one of the headings provided.

The headings are: applicants (1) who are submitting GCE/GCSE exams (2) other school-leaving exams including the Leaving Certificate Applied, or the Leaving Certificate before 1985, the NUI matriculation or Trinity Matriculation exams before 2012, or pre 1990 N Ireland or British GC(S)E exams; or any exam taken outside of Ireland; (3) applicants with NCVA awards prior to the year 2002; (4) other further education awards other than FETAC Level 5/6 or NCVA Level 2/3; (5) applicants who have attended a higher education institution; and (6) mature applicants (over 23 years of age).

Irish Independent

Looking at Science

PARENTS have been urged to steer their children away from traditional careers.

Old favourites like medicine, law and teaching should be abandoned in favour of science and technology, according to a leading higher education figure.

About 50,000 Leaving Certificate students are preparing to fill in their CAO application for college entry in September.

And parents have been told to take an active hand in their choices and steer them towards sectors where jobs are available.

With the CAO’s February 1 deadline looming, Higher Education Authority chairman John Hennessy last night made a strong intervention to advise parents to persuade their children to consider technology, science and engineering.

Parental influence on the choices facing Leaving Cert students should not be underestimated.

A recent study by the Economic and Social Research Institute found that parents, and mothers in particular, were a very important influence on career choices for more than 75pc of sixth years.

Opportunities

Mr Hennessy said: “The mammies and daddies of Ireland need to move away from the notion that future secure employment is in the traditional professions such as medicine, law and teaching.

“The real opportunities for Irish graduates will be in technology, science and engineering, and students with an interest in these areas must be encouraged to pursue courses in those fields.”

Mr Hennessy is also chairman and former managing director of engineering giant, Ericsson Ireland. He said that while there was an increasing supply of computing graduates coming through the third-level system, opportunities were growing even faster.

He said there would be healthy demand for talented computing and IT graduates over the coming years and there was a major challenge to ensure there would be enough to meet the clearly articulated needs of the industry.

Ireland is one of the world’s global centres for technology and Mr Hennessy said top class tech graduates were needed to work not only for indigenous and multinational companies but also to set up their own companies.

However, while strongly recommending that students consider courses in computing when filling out their CAO forms, he noted that some were “very maths heavy” and that students should contact the third-level institutions to find out more details.

- Katherine Donnelly

Irish Independent

UL to mark 40th anniversary with scholarship offer

A UNIVERSITY is marking its 40th anniversary this year by offering scholarships worth €2,000 each to 40 students who will begin their studies next autumn.
The scholarships for the University of Limerick (UL) will be awarded to students based on their performance in theLeaving Certificate.
All CAO applicants will be automatically included in the selection process provided they have not already received another bursary or scholarship from UL.
The scholarships will be offered across all disciplines with nine ear-marked for each of the four faculties.
There will also be two scholarships for the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance and two for inter-faculty programmes.
Professor Paul McCutcheon, vice president, academic and registrar at UL, said: “The UL40 scholarships are an ideal way to recognise UL’s academic achievements.”
- Breda Heffernan
Irish Independent