Over 30 agricultural science students at Munster Technological University (MTU) Kerry prepared for life after graduation yesterday (Tuesday, February 21) as they took part in a careers day.
The university’s north campus in Tralee hosted the event with representatives from over 20 agricultural businesses.
The final year students in the Bachelor of Science (Hons) in Agricultural Science programme also took part in mock interviews during the day.
“Today is all about networking, all about getting together, meeting potential employers and employers meeting the students,” Dr. Gerard Corkery, head of the Department of Biological and Pharmaceutical Science at MTU Kerry, told Agriland.
“It’s a unique opportunity for students because they are getting a trial run at interviews.
“They got job descriptions over the last number of weeks, they’re working on that and today will be their chance to network and get some feedback as well, which is excellent.”
Dr. Corkery said that forging links with employers is part of the strategic plan at MTU Kerry and feeds into the goal of regional development.
“We need to be able to know what industry wants and they need to know what our students are doing. It’s cross-collaboration,” he said.
Students
Ronan McCarthy, who hails from a dairy farm in Dunmanway, Co. Cork, was among the final year students taking part in the event.
“I grew up with very good farmers and they all have different systems, that’s what I’m interested in. Doing ag science in secondary school, I had a very good teacher and he pushed me into the industry.
“There is an awful lot of jobs coming out of the industry so that’s why you go into a college course,” he said.
“Down the line it’s farming alright. My father is young at the moment so I would love to go into the industry for 10-15 years, get the experience behind me and maybe think about going home then.
“You do the basics in college and they set us up, this is a brilliant course, but you’re really learning when you go out into industry,” he said.
The final year students are also currently putting the finishing touches to their theses, with the theme of animal health featuring strongly.
Caragh Lynch from Tralee focused on Infectious Bovine Rhinotracheitis (IBR) in dairy herds for her final year project.
Limerick woman Elaine Kennedy is examining antiemetic resistance of nematodes in the beef herd.
“We went to Clonakilty [Agricultural College] in second year, we got our Green Cert out of that, so that was the practical side. Then we got to do work placement in third year which helps now that we’re looking for jobs,” she said.
Employers
With around 20 potential employers present at MTU, it was clear there were plenty of roles on offer for the students in the agri-business sector.
James Ryall, national sales manager with Agri-Lloyd, said that career days give the company the chance to meet prospective employees in-person.
“We’re in an industry where we’re calling to farms so the likes of that personality can come across in meetings like today. That’s what we’re looking for really.
“Education is massively important but people buy from people,” he told Agriland.
Rosarii O’Connor, field manager with Munster Bovine, said that they are “very much in expansion mode” for milk recording.
“We’re currently looking for milk recorders, but we have other roles as well.
“You get in students, you have to work with them and you have to develop them. At Munster Bovine, we’re very aware of that, we’re very prepared to put in the work when we do get new recruits,” she said.
Shane Burns, who works as a nutritionist at Roche’s Feeds, also believes there are “plenty of jobs” available in the industry.
“There’s plenty of opportunities there. It’s constantly growing and evolving. It’s a lovely industry to work in – everyone knows everyone.
“Going back to my own time in college, I’m still in contact on a daily basis with a lot of my classmates in the industry. A lot of the students here today will say similar things in years to come,” he said.
Patrick Cashman from Goldcrop said that the agricultural industry is “made by the people in it”.
“It’s at a time of challenge that the new students and the new knowledge is most important.
“There’s always challenges, but there’s certainly challenges there now and the enthusiasm, energy and knowledge that the new students bring to the industry is going to be critical for its future,” he said.
John Murphy, milk quality coordinator at Kerry Agribusiness, said that they have built up a close relationship with MTU over the years.
“There is a lot of employment at the moment so it is more difficult maybe to attract students than it was in the past.
“But still, if you have a good offering for the students, some people want to stay local, some want to move around. There’s always different students looking for different opportunities so you’ll always find someone that’s a fit,” he said.
MTU
Along with agricultural science, the Department of Biological and Pharmaceutical Science at MTU Kerry, which has around 700 students, runs wildlife biology, veterinary bioscience, pharmaceutical science and pharmacy technician courses.
There are plans to develop more programmes in the future.
“We going to be at the stage now in the next 12-24 months where we’re going to be moving into a new STEM [science, technology, engineering and maths] building here at MTU Kerry which will hopefully give us more space that we can actually attract more students,” Dr. Corkery said.