The Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine has over 3,000 staff working in locations all around the country, from Clonakilty to Raphoe, Galway to Dublin, Sligo to Wexford.

The Department also has staff working in cities across the globe including Beijing, Brussels, Geneva, London, Moscow, Paris, Rome and Washington.

We recently caught up with one member of staff, who has worked in a number of these locations, and asked her about career opportunities in the Department.

Ann Derwin currently serves as an assistant secretary in the Department. Prior to that, she was the Department’s chief economist, and prior to that again she worked as a veterinary inspector, also in the Department. Ann previously represented the Department abroad, working for four years as the agriculture attaché at the Embassy of Ireland in Madrid.

Speaking about her current role, which spans all aspects of running the Department, including finance, accounting, HR and recruitment, she said the Department has responded to changing times.

Since 2007, it has lost almost 1,500 people and is now a smaller, leaner operation. “Now that the recruitment embargo has been lifted, we have begun recruiting again and are seeking to fill 200 positions this year alone.

“These job opportunities will span a range of disciplines and should appeal to a wide range of people – from new graduates to more experienced professionals, and include technical officer roles, agricultural inspector roles, administrative posts, food and microbiology laboratory scientists, marine engineers, vets, molecular biologists, ICT roles including applications development, GIS specialists and IT infrastructure development experts.”

Ann says there has never been a better time to join the industry. She sees a huge opportunity for the sector and believes that Ireland will reach its ambitious goals, as set out in Food Wise 2025. She explains that in 2009 total agri-food exports were less than €8bn, and last year they reached €11.3bn, with exports forecast to reach €19bn by 2025.

The right people with the right skills

“It’s now about getting the right people with the right skills in the right places to help deliver Ireland’s growth targets,” says Ann.

She adds: “The Department offers plenty of opportunities which allow people to make a real difference.”

Commenting specifically on the opportunities within the Department, Ann says the possibilities are numerous, including influencing policy in a range of areas, such as food safety, animal health, environmental sustainability, food security, forestry and the marine sectors, contributing to shaping the next Rural Development Plan for Ireland or negotiating the next CAP.

It also facilitates continuous professional development and represents Ireland at both national and international level.

Driving excellence

Asked what makes the Department different, she said: “We are not profit-driven, but rather it is all about driving operational excellence and delivering the best service possible for our customers and the best outcomes for society.”

Food safety and animal health are crucial to the continued success of our agri-food sector, and the Department employs scientists from a wide range of disciplines to carry out the analysis required under European and Irish regulations.

The Department of Agriculture places huge importance on continually developing its staff and offers many opportunities to work in multidisciplinary teams on challenging projects.

Work-life balance is seen as key to a healthy and happy workforce. The Department facilitates better work-life balance through options such as work-sharing and shorter, flexible working hours.

The Department also encourages mobility, enabling staff to gain valuable experience across a range of different work areas and at locations outside of Dublin in the main regional offices in Wexford, Cavan, Portlaoise, Clonakilty and Backweston. Many jobs involve outdoor field work, visiting farms and food businesses throughout the country.

Why choose the department?

Asked why a young graduate today might consider a career in the Department of Agriculture, Ann said that the Department offers a friendly and collegial work environment, ongoing skills and career development, as well as great opportunities to make a meaningful contribution in policy areas, such as agriculture, food and nutrition as well as environmental policy and rural and marine development.

It offers diverse work experience, opportunities to work in locations around Ireland and the world, and – most importantly – it provides the opportunity to make a real difference.

ag officers competition

There is a competition for technical agricultural officers due out soon. The educational requirements are five subjects in the leaving certificate and an advanced level 6 diploma.

There will also be jobs coming up for marine engineers, vets and laboratory staff in the areas of bioscience, biomedical lab science and molecular science.

Various administrative and ICT posts will also be advertised. The important thing is to register in the first instance with the public appointments service (PAS) for notifications about upcoming jobs in the Department and the wider civil service. For further information, go to www.publicjobs.ie

Insider advice

Asked for advice for anyone considering a career in the Department, she said it is important to recognise that entry-level posts may provide a stepping stone to a whole range of other roles within the Department. So, be open to trying different roles and developing new skills, focus on the job in hand at any given time, on doing it really well, and develop a strong network among colleagues.

The Department publishes information in relation to all upcoming competitions on its website. See www.agriculture.gov.ie/customerservice/careersinagriculturefoodmarinesectors/ for more information on this.

The Department will have a stand at the Agri Careers Fair, with staff from a range of different areas who are looking forward to talking to anyone thinking of a career in the Department.

If you are interested in a career in the agri-industry, come along to the Irish Farmers Journal and open eir Agri Careers Fair, which takes place in the RDS on 3 March 2016. For more information, click here.