Kristyna Hajkova

Marketing

Sligo

Where are you from (town and school)?

I’m from Czech Republic, small village called Krusovice, near Prague. I went to secondary school in a town near my village, Rakovnik, I studied Gymnasium.

• Tell us a little bit about yourself and what led you to choosing your course

Growing up, I began to use social media, and I started to really enjoy it. I was also very creative and open to new ideas. As I got older, I started going to concerts, I got some awareness of the movie industry, sport industry and music industry, over past two years I really got into it. I have also always wanted to try and study abroad and not in my native language and get some great experience. In the past few years, I’ve been working on it hard, and it paid off. When I saw that ATU offers Marketing course alone without any business with it, I knew that it was exactly what I was looking for because in Czech Republic, there are not that many marketing opportunities.

I have also grown up doing aerobics since I was little which is a creative sport, and I did it for 12 years. I learnt a lot from it. Now I enjoy going to different kinds of event, sports championships, lot of different concerts etc. I fell in love with creating social media content either if it is for myself or for example our ATU Sligo Volleyball Team.

• Tell us why you chose ATU

I chose ATU particularly because it offers single marketing course, and it focuses mainly on everything that is useful in marketing. I wanted to learn a new language as well so I chose my course because I can do Spanish. When I was deciding between countries I was offered to go to, I chose Ireland mainly because of the language and the convenient location for me, it is only two and a half hours flight from Czechia. I also found Sligo really nice as of nature and town. I like that the university is modern, and we use modern learning sources and technique. Overall, I just fell in love with ATU when I first read about it.

• What do you like about life in your campus location (people, food, accommodation, scenery etc.)?

I must say I love the people the most. Everyone is so nice and genuine. I made really good friends throughout the year in volleyball, my course and just from constantly meeting with others. The location of the accommodation is very convenient as I live in Gateway, so I can just cross the street. I like that there are private apartments for 3 people each and that I can organise myself how I want. The town is a little bit far but nothing that the bus couldn’t solve. The food is kind of like Czechia but as every foreigner would say, home is home.

I’ve never had beach that close so the fact that I can just get on a bus and be at Strandhill or Rosses Point in thirty minutes is amazing and love going to beach and explore.

• What advice would you give to a student thinking about coming to ATU?

My advice would be to definitely give ATU Sligo a chance. There are lots of different opportunities on what to study and a wide range of activities you can do. Doesn’t matter if you choose to be part of a club or society or just enjoy your free time here on your own and with friends.

• What do/did you enjoy most about your course?

I would say definitely working on projects in teams, we had so much fun and learnt many new things. I also like the balance between practical and theoretical learning and that our course is very creative, and I get to work on projects I enjoy. We get the opportunity to work with businesses and help them with marketing side of their business and we also can go to Erasmus programme abroad.

• If you were speaking with a first-year student about to start your course, what advice/information would you give them?

My advice would be to not be afraid to put yourself into it. Everyone had to come over anxieties from working with people or presenting before others but in the end, you can really enjoy it. You don’t have to be afraid of not finding any friends because you have a great opportunity to get to know people either if it is through working on a project together or joining a club or society.

• If you are/were involved in sport, volunteering, working or have other passions you pursue outside of your academic life, can you tell us about that (especially mention any teams, clubs or awards)?

I’m part of the ATU Sligo Volleyball Club, and volleyball has been part of my life for nearly 6 years. In my first year I’ve been helping out with the Volleyball club, especially with social media. I got the opportunity to become a chairperson from my second year. It is a great experience for me, and it is exactly what I wanted to do here in my free time. I love bringing people together through sport or other activities. I also enjoy leading a team and helping everyone improve. Our club has players on all skill levels, and everyone is welcome to join and be part of our ATU Sligo Volleyball family.

• What are your plans after graduating?

My plan is to run for the student officer after my fourth year and gain some experience and help other students here in ATU. After that I would like to do my master’s degree in a different country, preferably Australia or America. After I finish university, my dream is to get to the sport and music industry and work as a marketing person for any sports team or a band or singer. During the job I would love to travel and explore the world.