Nenagh College to host careers exhibition
Nenagh College is currently gearing up to host a localised, student-focused careers exhibition, set to take place in the school hall on Thursday, October 1, from 9:30am to 1:30pm. Designed to “bring everyone together under one roof”, the event will welcome students from Nenagh’s three second-level colleges (Nenagh College, Nenagh CBS and St. Mary’s Secondary School), as well as Further Education and Training (FET) students from Nenagh and students from Borrisokane Community College, offering them an opportunity to engage with a myriad of colleges, universities, FET providers, industry representatives and employers. Fundamentally, the aim of the event is to expose students to a variety of career options and opportunities, enabling them to make informed choices about their future and to take the next step with confidence.
For Nenagh College Career Guidance Counsellor Rochelle Maharaj, who, along with school principal Damien Kennedy, is the leading force behind organising the event, this particular careers fair is not intended to replace other regional and national exhibitions, but to give students a more personalised flavour of the career options available to them. Plans to develop a function of this nature had been discussed for a number of years, both to cater to the needs of the local school community and also to highlight the diverse options that now exist in terms of career pathways and work opportunities. “We thought we’d like to do something for the local school community,” Rochelle says. “Because there are so many different options out there. It’s not simply about going to universities and colleges. We also want to showcase FETs, as well as apprenticeships and training opportunities.”
Rochelle says that students’ career choices have changed dramatically in the past decade, but particularly in the last five or six years. Apprenticeships and traineeships are growing increasingly popular, and while it remains difficult to secure spots with some of the larger national companies like the ESB and Bus Éireann, she has seen students go on to pursue careers in areas such as aircraft mechanics and eventually end up working in big firms such as Ryanair. While around 60 per-cent of students still go the university or college route, there has been a positive shift in terms of the popularity and perception of PLC courses and FET colleges. “A lot of students are getting the points but deciding to do an FET course anyway. So PLCs and FETs are becoming more validated, if you know what I mean. They’re not seen as second-class citizen options any more,” Rochelle emphasises.
Different paths
Rochelle says that everyone’s path is different and events like this one can help to shape careers and indeed to shape lives. “Sometimes students don’t know an opportunity exists until they get the chance to speak to someone about it,” she says. Exhibitors on the day will include many of the main colleges and universities but also local firms and employers such as Abbey Machinery and Summerhill Veterinary Clinic, amongst others. Key personnel from FET providers like Tipperary ETB will also have a strong presence. With over 60,000 students sitting the Leaving Cert each year, national and regional career fairs can often be crowded and overwhelming. Rochelle says that events like this one in Nenagh, which are smaller and more compact, are easier for students to navigate and can often serve as a powerful motivator if they discover a career pathway which attracts them.
With the emergence of AI now drastically changing how the world of work operates, Rochelle has some useful insights. She says that certain careers, notably computer science, may well be made even more valuable because of AI, given that they entail a knowledge and understanding of how the technology works. “You’re not going to be outdone by the computer,” she remarks. She also maintains that languages will remain important, as will any jobs that require person-to-person contact or human oversight.
Asked what would represent success in terms of the careers fair overall, Rochelle has a simple answer. “We want every student who attends to leave with a better understanding of the options that are available,” she says.