On a cold October evening the senior school building was a hive of activity, the annual Career’s Evening was taking place and all students from 4th , 5th and 6th year were in attendance. The evening took the format of a brief opening of the event given by myself; Emma Maguire Timmins, the Career Guidance Counsellor of the school,highlighting the magnitude of the event, introducing the speakers and emphasising the importance of reflection and seeing life as an exiting journey of discovery and then the main event began!
There were seven separate talks on Science by Dr.Mani Ramaswami, Engineering by Michael Collins, Media by John Boyle, Primary school Education by Elizabeth Breen, Business by Laura Merity, the Defence Forces by Lt.Tom Quigley and Social work by Emma Keogh.
The students were given the option to go to four workshops given by these speakers. At the end of the evening the final speaker was a barrister named Ross Maguire and he closed the evening by speaking to all the students on a career in the Law, living a ‘rock and roll life ‘ and about choosing a path where you are never bored and one that can meet the needs of society.
All in all the evening was a huge success and the students left with questions and a great sense of excitement for their future. This could not have happened without the generous input of each speaker who planned and carried out very interesting and thought provoking workshops. I also wish to thank the students for their attendance, interest and enthusiasm and for all the teachers who helped to make the event run smoothly.
This evening is an integral part of the senior school calendar and is a time for the students to really consider what life will be like for them once their time in secondary school is over. The aim of the event is to inspire and to provoke active reflection, I hope it has succeeded in its endeavour. Mrs Emma Maguire Timmins