College progression link between Ballyhaise Agricultural College and WIT enabled Declan to transfer directly into year 2 of BSc in Forestry at WIT
Mature student and graduate of BSc (Hons) In Land Management in Forestry, Declan Carroll started off with a Level 5 Certificate in Forestry and progressed further earning himself a position on the Coillte Graduate Programme upon graduation.
Declan completed his level 5 Certificate in Forestry at Ballyhaise Agricultural College and took advantage of the course progression link with WIT.
“The course I had done linked up with WIT so I was able to skip first year. So once I did my level 5 in Ballyhaise, it gave me a buy into second year of WIT. It was great. It made it easy to make the transition I guess, when you’re straight into second year it didn’t feel as long a time I guess to be stuck in college,” Declan comments.
Practical based learning
Declan began the graduate programme with Coillte one month prior to graduation and is delighted with the position he is in. He believes that the practical based learning methods at WIT helped him land his position on the Coillte Graduate Programme.
“It’s regarded as a more practical course in WIT, with more experience for being out in the ground, as opposed to being strictly academic,” he says.
WIT social life
Declan is a mature student and originally from Knockananna, County Wicklow.
“I came back as a mature student, so it wasn’t like if you’re starting college coming straight out of school - it’s a very different experience. But it was perfect, the town was great, I enjoyed the life and stuff, it was fun,” he says.
Industry active lecturers
Declan thought having course lecturers who can practice what they preach was a fantastic element of the course.
“They were great, some of our lecturers were actually full time foresters as well, so they knew exactly what they were talking about, so it was fantastic that way,” Declan comments.
Business in forestry
When giving advice to future students, Declan expressed that there is business elements to the BSc (Hons) in Land Management in Forestry, which some may not find as interesting as other subjects, but developing skills and knowledge in business can be very useful when working in industry.
“My graduate programme that I’m in now it’s all very heavily towards business, so it stood to me in that regard,” Declan comments.
Overall Declan is delighted with his experience as a mature student at WIT and his current position at Coillte.
“My own success story,” he concludes.
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