Construction Management & Engineering graduate Lorcan Hickey was the recipient of the 2016 CIOB Medal for outstanding achievement in the final year of his studies
Lorcan, who hails from County Kildare, returned to education in 2012 as a mature student, having worked as a carpenter for a number of years. During his time in WIT, Lorcan took full advantage of every opportunity presented to him, with highlights including spending a full semester in 2nd year in Denmark studying Architectural Technology & Construction Management and undertaking his 3rd year Industrial Placement with Laing O’Rourke on the construction of the prestigious new Crossrail Liverpool Street Station in Central London. Achieving a first class honours degree, Lorcan excelled in his final year studies, and picked up the Sisk Award for his Dissertation and the Clancy Construction Industry Award for Industrial Placement.
In an Interview with Graduate Ireland last July, Lorcan had some advice about the BSc (Hons) in Construction Management & Engineering.
I chose this career path as I wanted to build on my existing experience and knowledge base, obtained initially through an Advanced Craft Certificate (Carpentry & Joinery). This BSc programme gave me the opportunity to complete a four-year honours degree and to study in Denmark, as well as completing an industrial work placement in the UK.
Industrial Placement
In 2015 I did a seven-month industrial placement with Laing O’Rourke at the new Crossrail Liverpool Street Station in Central London. Crossrail is a new 118 km railway connecting 40 stations, Liverpool Street being one of the new stations on the route. I worked at one of the two new ticket halls under construction, on a confined worksite with live train tunnels in operation beneath
It was an excellent opportunity to observe and practise the teachings of the previous three years of my course in areas such as project management, tunnelling and setting out. My roles and responsibilities My roles during this time mainly involved managing subcontractor packages. I was responsible for coordinating document approvals, managing site works, and eventually helping to close out final accounts
Advice
My advice Take every opportunity available to develop your skills further. At times, this may seem daunting, but I have found that the opportunities outside my comfort zone were the ones which delivered the greatest rewards.
Study the Bachelor of Science in Construction Management at WIT
The Bachelor of Science in Construction Management at WIT is a four-year level 8 course prepares students for responsible engineering and management roles in all phases of construction projects. It emphasises management, engineering and technological techniques useful in organising, planning and controlling the activities of diverse specialists working in the project environment of the Irish and international construction industry.
Each student will take part in a 30-week paid industrial work placement with companies who specialise in areas such as, General Contractors in Civil Engineering, Building and Residential Property and Project Management Companies.
Students enrolling in this degree can expect to study modules such as, Construction Technology, Engineering Services and Construction Economics.
For further information on the Construction Management & Engineering programme, please see [url=http://www.wit.ie/wd025]http://www.wit.ie/wd025[/url] or contact Brian Graham at [email protected]
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