Olivia Lynch Ward

B.A. (Hons) Marketing and Sales, Galway City Dublin Road Campus

Galway City – Dublin Road

Where are you from (town and school)?

I’m from Dunlavin, County Wicklow. I went to Secondary School in St. Kevins Community College

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

When I was in school I used to milk cows on the weekends and during school holidays. This gave me a love for agriculture and I wanted to study it in college. My grandparents were both from Galway so Mountbellew Agricultural College was the perfect fit. In first year I studied Agri Business and Environmental Management which was a business course associated with GMIT but had an incredible amount of hands on experience when it came to farming. During my first year Covid hit and with all the down time I realised that I was probably more suited to a conventional business course. Because my agricultural course was linked to a Business course in GMIT at the time, this meant that I could transfer into second year of Sales and Marketing. This was the best decision I ever made. Even though I missed the agricultural side Marketing is my passion and I’m forever grateful to myself for making the decision to move.

Tell us why you chose ATU

Galway was always my destination and when choosing between the two colleges I though ATU seemed more student focused and had much more freedom in moving courses if it didn’t work out. There was a lot more practical work involved as well.

What do you like about life in your campus location?

I loved my time in ATU. The facilities are great, the library and study rooms especially. As a group we spent countless hours in the study rooms until closing which was 10pm. I think the staff and lectures in particular are amazing with many of them having experience in the industry. Accommodation is always a tricky one but I was looking to always fall on my feet! Galway is an incredible place to go to college and I haven’t left since!

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

I think its important to do you research. Its important to know what you are going to study but also what it entails, if there’s a placement, if its continuous assessment, is there a thesis? Asking someone who has done the course already will always give you a great understanding of what the work load is like. It’s also really important to make sure that Galway is for you. It can be hard travelling home every weekend and finding time to work, study and have fun. I think the most important thing is to get all the facts before making your decision on whether Galway is right for you.

What do/did you enjoy most about your course?

I enjoyed everything honestly. I loved the modules and how relevant they were. I was always very fond of the lectures as I though their industry experience always helped them in explaining why we were learning certain things and why they were relevant. There was so much group work which really suited me and I made incredible friends from my course.

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

I would tell them to enjoy it! College can be a very stressful experience and most of the time it’s a first year’s first time away from home. Your trying to make new friends, live on your own, manage your money and it can all get overwhelming but its really important to remember to just enjoy yourself. Of course you need to study and go to lectures but it’s also important to have a social life as well. For marketing and sales students this is even more important as you future job will involve being social and outgoing.

What are your plans after graduating?

Once I graduated I went to Dublin as a Client Service Graduate with TikTok. This opportunity came from my Internship during the summer of third year. I am now the Commercial Marketing Manager of the Galway Races.