Support from lectures and the smaller class groups helped Laura throughout her three years at South East Technological University (SETU) and helped her secure a dream role with Google.
"Local companies have worked hand-in-hand with SETU to create some of the course content, to best equip students to go out into the working world." SETU Graduate, Laura Hennessy
Laura Hennessy is originally from Waterford and is a past pupil of Presentation Secondary School, Waterford. Laura is a graduate of the BSc in Information Technology.
Securing a dream job
I am thrilled to be graduating from SETU with a distinction in the BSc in Information Technology. The hard work feels worth it and I couldn’t have asked for better support from our lecturers throughout our three years. The BSc in Information Technology has equipped me for the tech industry with knowledge in multiple areas.
From doing the industrial placement within this course, it has also allowed me to become a Googler full-time. I am now an Information Technology Resident in Google HQ, Dublin, and could not be happier I am working on numerous projects and I'm currently working towards a Technical Program Management role.
Door-is-always-open approach
Computer Science at UCC was my first choice on my CAO. I moved to Cork and started in UCC. However, I struggled with programming and web design. I had never once done anything with programming or web development before and found the pace quite quick, so I decided to move back home and study something similar at SETU to be closer to home. I re-applied to the CAO and started the BSc in Information Technology at SETU. SETU have great lecturers who have a door-is-always-open approach. The courses are taken at your own pace with great course content, which I adapted well to, and the classes are smaller.
SETU highlights
I had so many great opportunities and memories while studying at SETU. Lea-Anne Gaffney and I ran the Women in Tech Society in the college, where we got to meet women from various tech courses and ran events. It was great to have a catch-up with these women and see how they were getting on in their courses, as well as get to know them better.
I also got to go to numerous girls’ secondary schools alongside Lea-Anne, where we would talk about our journeys and the opportunities and options out there for women in technology. Our aim was to raise awareness for Women in Tech and it was great to see so many young girls interested in studying technology in the future. We also got to speak and give talks at SETU open days which was amazing. The support we received from all of the lecturers and staff in SETU for our Women In Tech talks was great.
Meetings Google's CEO
I chose the Industrial Placement option in Third Year and was excited to get some hands on experience within the tech industry itself. I applied to Google for the role of Information Technology internship, and after 3 rounds of interviews, I was accepted for a seven-month internship in Google HQ, Dublin.
The Information Technology internship was an amazing opportunity which saw me working on projects three days per week, and supporting Googlers globally the other two. Two projects which I worked on were adapted globally and have now been implemented for everyday use in Google which I am extremely proud of. I also got to travel to Riga, Latvia with my team, and also travelled to Zurich for the Intern Summit, which allowed me to meet up with over 200 other interns. The most memorable moment of my internship was getting to meet the CEO of Google, Sundar Pichai. I gained a vast amount of experience in the role, whilst still getting to enjoy my time with Google.
SETU's relationship with local companies
There are amazing facilities too. SETU have great lecturers who have a door-is-always-open approach. The courses are taken at your own pace with great course content, which I really adapted well to. This was a change from UCC where classes were a lot larger, and everyone was expected to have a certain level of knowledge. Local companies have worked hand-in-hand with SETU to create some of the course content, to best equip students to go out into the working world.
Advice
I would advise any student who’s not sure about what they want to do or who already know, to take a look at tech courses. Research it and see if it’s something you might be interested in. Talk to someone in a tech course, or already in the industry. There are also so many women out there, who are now realising it’s what they want to do.
Women have just as much to bring to the table when it comes to technology. There are so many more opportunities in technology than just programming, so if programming isn’t what you see yourself doing in the future, that’s fine. There is a world of opportunities for everyone within the tech industry.
