11 minute read
New dawn at work
Career u-turn for brave Tracey
Tracey Simpson is a mature student and has been working with Waterford Chamber over the past year. Here she tells her story of returning to full-time education at South East Technological University.
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My name is Tracey, 40+ a single parent, and in 2019 I became a full-time mature student at WIT by taking on a Bachelor’s Degree in Honours Business. In year one, a fellow student asked me, “If you already have a career as a chef, why bother go back to college and at your age?”
Well, have you ever woken up in your 40s and felt like you are stuck in a negative loop with your worklife balance and complaining about it doesn’t alter the miserable affect it is having? Well I have. Slowly I came to the realisation that the only person who could break that loop was me, so I guess I took the bull by the horns and smashed the hell out of that loop by choosing a career change and ventured back to college. This was no easy feat for me – I was terrified and completely out of my comfort zone.
Year one was a big adjustment and just as I got into a routine, Covid hit, I found myself doing college from my sitting room while homeschooling my child, yet I successfully adapted. At the end of year two, I decided to specialise in Marketing. This best suited the skills I acquired through many years as a chef – creativity, adaptability, research, great organisational and communication skills, plus being very comfortable in a fast-paced environment.
Before I knew it, I was in year 3 and work placement was on the horizon. I became worried about different issues like my age, child minding etc. I voiced my concerns with Joe Daly, the Director of Placement and lecturer for Business & Management Organisation at SETU. He explained every student has a unique situation and not to worry. Joe rang me a few weeks later confident he had found the perfect work placement. A week later I had an interview with Gerald Hurley, CEO of Waterford Chamber of Commerce, and I started shortly after.
On starting my placement, I began questioning my lack of experience in an office environment and how I was entering a busy organisation armed only with what I had learned in college and my transferrable skills. Fast forward to today and what an honour it was to work with the phenomenal powerhouse of a team that is the Waterford Chamber. They made me feel like part of the team, no question was stupid, they shared their years of experience with me, motivated and challenged me daily, and now I know for certain that marketing is for me.
I am now nearing the completion of year 3 and with it the end of my work placement. I have made some lifelong friends and there will be tears shed as I leave and head back to complete my final year. I never thought back in 2019 that I would be going to back to college and coming out with a university degree.
SETU leads €1.95m Portalis project
The Portalis team is busy sharing its story and exciting project details at a number of events across the South East. Portalis maps the story of the first journey between Ireland and Wales, dating back to the Mesolithic period, 10,000 years ago, in the context of contemporary resilience and climate adaptation, for local coastal communities and their visitors.
Portalis is a design-led transdisciplinary pilot project, supported by the European Regional Development Fund through the Ireland Wales Cooperation Programme. The €1.95 million project aims to raise awareness, protect shared cultural and natural heritage and support sustainable engagement, establishing two new experiential tourism and cultural cross-border networks.
The project is led by South East Technological University (SETU) and is supported by the University of Wales Trinity Saint David, Ceredigion County Council and Waterford Chamber.
The Ireland Wales 2014-2020 European Territorial Cooperation (ETC) programme is a maritime programme connecting businesses and communities on the West coast of Wales with the South-East coast of Ireland. The programme focuses on seeking solutions to shared challenges including adaption of the Irish Sea and coastal communities to climate change, and cultural and natural resources and heritage.
Speaking about the project, Donal Nolan from Waterford Chamber of Commerce said: “Our remit as part of this project is to establish a network that will facilitate future co-operation between the regions and enhance the experience for the local communities as tourists flow between the Welsh and Irish sites. Throughout this project, we want to work with local communities to help them develop their cultural resources to make their area a better place to visit and live in.”
For more information visit www. portalisproject.eu
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Simon Harris, TD, Minister for Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science demoing a virtual reality experience created by Walton Institute.
The development of research activity by SETU will enhance the existing environment for enterprise activity and company growth, building
resilience into the local economy.
South East Technological University brings together over 550 research active staff, nine research centres, one research institute and four Technology Gateways across Waterford and Carlow, expanding the range and quality of research to meet the needs of the south east.
Engineering and manufacturing, medical technologies, pharma and bio-pharma, ICT, financial services and food production have all been identified as key areas of focus for industrial and enterprise development in the region. The growth of research activity in disciplines such as software engineering, applied materials, pharmaceutical and molecular biology, agri-technology as well as business administration, finance, sport, and health is essential to support future progress as a new university and the region as a whole.
The development of such research activity by SETU will enhance the existing environment for enterprise activity, research & development (R&D), and company growth; build resilience into the regional economy; establish the south east as the place of choice for entrepreneurship, talent and investment; making the south east a ‘learning region’ with education, knowledge generation and exchange, and innovation as central activities that allow all to play a role in its economic, social and cultural development.
“Establishing the technological university in the south east is a game-changer for the region when it comes to high-end R&D jobs,
talent and retention. Finally, we can look forward to competing with other regions nationally and internationally. The TU marks the dawn of ‘joined up thinking’ for R&D in the region,” said Dr Mark White, Vice President of Research, Innovation and Graduate Studies, SETU Waterford.
The success and accomplishments of SETU researchers are well established. In the five years from 2016 to 2020 alone, researchers from SETU attracted over €95m in research funding from a variety of European and national funding agencies, state bodies and industrial partners. Such funding has supported ground-breaking and societally relevant projects in areas such as cancer care, renewable energy, climate change, cybersecurity and more.
The technological university will continue to focus on research quality and enhancing the performance of its research centres, through a targeted increase in research income, with a view to enhancing the international reputation of research at the university, and with consequent implications for student recruitment. Attracting international research talent will further enhance knowledge exchange and contribution to the international community, placing SETU in the global research landscape.
SETU will employ a number of initiatives to support growing the research student population, including an extensive universityfunded and industry co-funded scholarship programme; developing strong international partnerships through joint PhD programmes and the European University Alliance, EU-Conexus; and targeting the Marie Skłodowska-Curie Action Fellowships, SFI centre memberships, and IRC Fellowships for additional PhD and Postdoctoral positions.
Dr Geraldine Canny, Head of Research, SETU Waterford stated, “Increasing our postgraduate and postdoctoral researcher numbers is a key objective to augment SETU’s research and innovation capacity and footprint. These researchers will conduct innovative, relevant, and impactful research, in collaboration with industry and other entities such as the healthcare service, charities, NGOs, and government departments. The training programmes offered at SETU will ensure they are highly employable.”
Building on long-standing relationships, SETU will continue to lead research collaboration with industry, society, and other stakeholders, providing support and innovative engagement opportunities, enhancing the existing innovation ecosystem for society and industry at regional and national levels. At the same time, to broaden its European reach, SETU will prioritise participation in European and global industry and enterprise networks.
The complex challenges facing Europe and the world require us to look beyond STEM (Science, Technology Engineering and Maths) research and draw on non-scientific domains. The ability of SETU to embrace the range of activity and draw on the expertise from across the university’s many disciplines will be a critical component in broadening the innovation base in the south east for the future.
Dr Mark White, Vice President of Research, Innovation and Graduate Studies, SETU Waterford Dr Geraldine Canny, Head of Research, SETU Waterford
Job opportunities for Ukrainian workers
Like businesses all over the country, a number of Waterford businesses are experiencing extreme staff shortages, particularly as we head into the summer season.
On the other hand, Waterford has welcomed approximately 1,000 Ukrainian refugees in recent months, many of whom are eager to work.
Waterford Chamber is now working with Coordinators of the City Rest Centres to identify potential opportunities for all concerned.
Gerald Hurley, CEO Waterford Chamber explains: “Since the onset of the Russian invasion of Ukraine, over 33,000 Ukrainian refugees have relocated to Ireland. We have been working with Waterford City & County Council in welcoming Ukrainian families to Waterford with approximately 1,000 refugees now living across the city and county, many of whom are still in centres.
“We know they want to go home and will when it is safe to do so, but whilst here, they are eager to work. We are liaising with the Rest Centre Coordinators to identify job opportunities for those in a position to take on employment. Many are qualified professionals, while others may be open to seasonal work.
“We want to work with all parties to ensure the best outcome for all. Businesses are welcome to get in touch with us directly at Waterford Chamber with their requirements.”
Figures from the Central Statistics Office (CSO) show women aged 20 and over account for 48 per cent of arrivals to date, and individuals aged 0 to 19 made up 38 per cent.
The highest proportion of those arriving, just over 14,700, were categorised as "one parent with children".
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