It has been a hectic few weeks for me as I have finished my work placement for the summer. The final part of my placement was carried out at the Teagasc Research Centre, Grange, where I assisted in the various trials that are being carried out in the large facility.

This was an enjoyable experience for me as I got the opportunity to see what is involved in carrying out a PhD programme.

I spent seven weeks in total at Grange and participated in a wide range of tasks, including fat-scanning, blood-sampling, lab work and grass-measuring. The placement involved everything we do in college, using science as the underlying principle of agriculture. I learned a great deal and everybody was so friendly and helpful, which made the weeks fly by.

Last week, I had my interview in UCD, which is the cumulative part of the professional work experience module. The interview consists of a panel of experts who ask you questions about your placement experience. You must also compile a project based on your placement and bring it to the interview for assessment.

Although there were some tricky questions, the interview went well and I am happy to finally have the placement over and can enjoy the last of the summer. Overall, I thoroughly enjoyed my placement and I got to experience what it’s like to work for companies and I learned so much. I believe the PWE module offered by UCD acts as a great opportunity for students to discover what career path they want to pursue after college. The module also allows students to put everything learned in theory into practice and to see how Irish farms are run and managed from day to day.

The 20 weeks have seen me travel to England to work with the world-renowned AI company, Genus ABS, before travelling back to Ireland to work alongside Irish-based beef specialist company, Irish Hereford Prime.

I also spent a portion of my placement at the research facility at Teagasc Grange, not to mention my two weeks spent travelling up and down the country with bovine reproduction specialist Dr Dan Ryan.

I also can’t forget my pet lambs when I carried out my sheep placement – I am now an expert at bottle-feeding lambs.

All in all, I had a great 20 weeks and opportunities to learn and see new things and meet a wide range of people, all working in the agricultural industry. For now, it is back home to Tipperary where I will not be idle for too long as Dad has a good few jobs lined up for me on the farm.