Agricultural Science Association (ASA) partners with WIT, Arvum and Glanbia to offer travel bursary for agriculture and agricultural science students
The winners of two ASA/WIT travel bursaries have been announced.
The winner of the ASA/WIT Travel bursary in association with Irish Farmers Journal and Arvum Group was third year BSc (Hons) Agricultural Science student Roisin Horan from Drangan, Thurles, Co Tipperary.
The winner of the ASA/WIT Travel bursary in association with Irish Farmers Journal and Glanbia was second year BSc in Agriculture student Peter McGuinness from Boardsmill, Trim, Co. Meath.
Speaking at the presentation of the bursary awards, David Leydon, Commercial Director of the Irish Farmers Journal said “The Irish Farmers Journal are delighted to once again support the WIT Professional Work Experience (PWE) bursary awards. Students of Agricultural Science are the future of our industry and we at the Irish Farmers Journal see these bursaries as providing a unique opportunity to students; allowing them to travel abroad and gain first-hand experience at an international level. Hearing the experiences gained from the bursary winners last year is testament to the value and we look forward to reading the blogs of this years’ winners in the coming months.”
Mary Delaney, ASA President says “We are excited to be working with the Farmers Journal again this year. The experience that you gain at an international level is invaluable and will benefit these students in their future career”.
Both Roisin and Peter have plans to travel to New Zealand to do farm work placements. Dr Siobhán Walsh, work placement co-ordinator, and lecturer at WIT said: “Thanks to our sponsors, we are delighted to be able to offer students travel bursaries again this year. The standard of applications was extremely high and I would like to congratulate Peter and Roisin on winning the bursaries. A number of students will start their placements in New Zealand and Australia in early January for 15 weeks and I wish them all the best.”
John O’Connor, Teagasc Kildalton, is involved in organising work placements for all WIT ag and ag science students, said: “This a great opportunity for our students to gain farm placement abroad. They get to see different farming systems and practices and it really enhances their understanding of agriculture at an international level.”
One of the sponsors of the travel bursary for second year BSc in Agriculture students is Glanbia. John Kealy, Glanbia Agribusiness comments on the benefits of work placement. “Working abroad for any period of time, is an investment every Agriculture student should make in themselves. You’re never too young to experience new ways of doing things and to experience this in some of the world’s leading dairy production facilities in New Zealand is an opportunity too good to miss. WIT and ASA are doing fantastic work in this regard and Glanbia are glad to be able to support this unique initiative in our own small way. Really well done to all the students for taking the time and effort to prepare and apply for the very competitive process. Hopefully this experience will help them in finding the right opportunities for themselves in the near future as the venture out to work in this great industry, Irish Agriculture. Best of luck to all.”
One of the sponsors of the travel bursary for third year BSc (Hons) Agricultural Science students is Arvum. Denise Stuart, Arvum said: “It was a pleasure and privilege to meet the students embarking on their work experience to Australia and New Zealand. We at Arvum Group are delighted to continue our support of the travel bursary. For the students it’s a wonderful adventure and a great opportunity. We would like to commend WIT on the continued success and development of their Agriculture and Ag. Science programmes. It was wonderful to see such genuine passion and commitment to farming from the students. We are in no doubt that their experience down under will enhance their skills and knowledge which leaves us assured that the future of agriculture in Ireland is in safe hands. We wish all of students the very best of luck.”
Student Peter McGuinness departs on New Year's Eve to start work on 3 January with a 1,000 cow dairy herd on a farm beside the town Methven in the province of Canterbury in the South Island of New Zealand. He said: "I am very honoured to be chosen for this excellent award that was made available to my classmates and I at WIT who are travelling overseas to complete the farm placement module. It has most definitely made taking the trip to the other side of the world a lot easier! I'd like to thank Glanbia and the Irish Farmers Journal for the sponsorship of this award."
Bursary recipient Roisin Horan describes how she will benefit from the award: “This achievement is giving me the opportunity to travel to New Zealand to complete my work experience placement. While there, I am eager to experience and appreciate the hard work and management involved in efficiently operating at the large scale New Zealand is renowned for.”
About the BSc (Hons) in Agricultural Science course at WIT
The BSc (Hons) in Agricultural Science course is a four-year full-time level 8 course which prepares students for a career in the areas of agricultural science and agri-business.
The programme is delivered in conjunction with Teagasc at Kildalton College of Agriculture. Transport is provided to Kildalton.
Self-management, team working, business awareness, problem solving, land management and communication are all areas which are strongly incorporated into the main core of this level 8 programme.
In the second semester of year 3, students can choose between a farm placement or an industrial placement. The Farm placement is designed to give the student experience of practical farming on a high quality farm. The Industrial Placement will allow learners to apply and develop their skills in the agri-food industry.
Graduates have a strong background in the areas of science, food, agriculture, the environment, business and quality assurance. Graduates from this course can expect to find employment in agri-food industries, sales and marketing departments of agri-businesses, consultancy and advisory services.
About the BSc in Agriculture course at WIT
The BSc in Agriculture at WIT is a three-year full-time level 7 course, with the follow on study option of BSc (Hons) in Land Management in Agriculture. Graduates from this course may find employment in fields such as: managers of modern farm enterprises, in agri-food cooperatives, in meat processing plants and sales positions in Agribusiness
The first two years of the course concentrates on equipping the student with the knowledge and skills needed to manage a modern commercial farm. The third year aims to expand the student’s business, managerial, scientific and IT skills.
This course fulfils the requirements for stamp duty exemption or land transfer for young farmers (Green Cert.)
Students take agriculture-based modules at Kildalton Agricultural College and scientific related modules are taken at WIT. A free bus service operates between WIT and Kildalton.
In the second year of the course students spend 12 weeks on farms specially chosen by Teagasc in order to get practical experience on high quality commercial farms. A number of students choose to travel overseas for farm experience e.g. New Zealand.
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