My Degree

I had no family background in Law at all but was intrigued by the idea of learning about historical legal systems that have influenced our current approaches to justice as well as the most recent developments. I knew that studying Law would give insights into the many different ways in which every society regulates itself and attempts to ensure justice to all involved in complex situations, which they do not feel able to resolve without external assistance often because they have quite conflicting interests. I was also particularly interested in learning about the ways in which scientific advances allow further information to be considered in modern casework - in respect of the circumstances in both civil and criminal cases.

I found the best thing about my course was the wide variety of fellow students from all walks of life that I met in every class and tutorial and the quality of lecturers and tutors. My degree has proven advantageous to me as it has given me a very broad set of choices in my professional career and a confidence to investigate and examine the history of issues, as well as recognition of the need to keep up with emerging developments.

My Glasgow Experience

I think that all my experiences at Glasgow made me more confident. I knew that I could take on new and different challenges. It also made me aware of the wide ranging pool of talent and the multiple opportunities that every generation of students has. Appreciate how quickly your time at University will pass and the very privileged opportunity you have while there to sample lots of experiences which will allow you to make better informed choices throughout your adult life but also give you some of the best and closest friends and most enjoyable times.

I was a member of political clubs, debating clubs and an elected member of the SRC Belonging to clubs and societies allows you to try out various interests, increase your skill sets and means that you come into contact with folk doing other courses. Some of my friends ended up with careers built on the interests and skills that they had gained as members of clubs or societies rather than the coursework they studied! I also enjoyed learning from all of the courses I took, the friends I made in the clubs and societies and it was also great to be able to share flats with others while living away from home for the first time.

Life After Glasgow

After graduating, I was a trainee Solicitor in a small private practice firm that dealt with a very wide range of cases - from family law and criminal cases, to contract and damages claims

I am now the Crown Agent for Scotland which means I am the Chief Executive of the Crown Office & Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) which is Scotland's prosecution service. I also act as the Queen's & Lord Treasurer's Remembrancer and decide whether to claim ownerless goods on behalf of the Crown for the benefit of the people of Scotland - items such as assets of dissolved companies or of individuals who have died without leaving a will and have no relatives to inherit and also 'Treasure Trove' which covers ancient artefacts that have been found which merit being claimed for allocation to museums in Scotland. As Crown Agent, I am the Principal Advisor on prosecution matters to the Lord Advocate who has the sole authority in Scotland to act as independent prosecutor in the public interest. As Chief Executive, I am also responsible for the day to day running of COPFS and act as 'Accountable Officer' which means I am responsible for the proper spending of the public money which COPFS is allocated by the Scottish Parliament to provide a prosecution service for the people of Scotland.

I also act as one of the 'Legal 40' which is a group of Law graduates invited to mentor current Law students. Each year we meet with students at a number of events hosted in the University and share our career experiences and we also provide opportunities for students to visit our work places.

My Degree

Given my wish to work as a Structural Engineer, the choice of course was very straight forward for me. The high regard the course is held in meant that my employment prospects were greatly enhanced by it. The link up with Edinburgh meant that not only was I getting a broad engineering education but I was also exposed to a broader Scottish experience and, through the diversity of those on the course, an international education too. I’ve found that an MSc from a well respected institution put me well ahead of others on the job scene.

My Glasgow Experience

Given the parameters of the course it lead me to be a lot more personally motivated and independent, readying me for a career in engineering. The diversity I experienced there gave me an insight into cultures I had never experienced before and as such, given the ever more global nature of business, also hugely helped me get ahead in business. As someone coming from Ireland, playing Gaelic Football for the university meant that I immediately had a community into which I fit and as such, never once felt homesick. The International Student society was a fantastic experience form beginning to end and through that I have made some of the best friendships that now span over the entire globe. The whole experience was a pleasure and I'd do it all over again if I had the chance.

Life After Glasgow

Since graduation, as most engineering graduates have found over the past few years, finding a footing in the employment market was initially turbulent but after a couple of short contracts I found myself in a permanent job for a number of years in an area I always wished to be involved in; designing multi-storey buildings in London City and all over the UK. There I was making a lasting difference to the skyline of one of the most iconic cities in the world. My daily responsibilities were focused on the design of a structure and the implementation of said design. This involved liaising with the design team and alongside them, deciding on a scheme which economically met the needs of the client. In order to achieve this, the company I worked for, Structural Systems, became a national leader in concrete design especially in the area of post-tensioning for fast, more economic and environmentally friendly design solutions.

The skills and experience from this role allowed me to return home to Ireland where I now work as Operations Director for MBN Construction Ltd. The company is involved in residential and commercial contracts and my role is more managerial than previous positions. As part of my post I deal directly with the client to ascertain what they require before coordinating the various sub-contractors and suppliers in order to deliver the design solution of the design team in a cost-effective, timely manner to the clients specific requirements.

The skills I gained at Glasgow University, and those honed in my various roles, also helped to open up a role in politics to me. The interpersonal skills and ability to problem solve I gained studying at Glasgow saw me elected to the National Executive of the Fianna Fáil party in the Republic of Ireland. This role has given me a direct link to legislators and an input into the legislative process where I represent the views of the grassroots.

My Degree

My MA was chosen because I loved books & reading - but, I'm afraid to say, with no great career plan in mind. My MLitt was chosen much more specifically, because I had built up a portfolio of creative writing and it was an area that I wanted to pursue professionally. With the MLitt, the best thing was definitely meeting & listening to other writers - and having a great mentor in terms of my tutor.

The Creative Writing Masters was a brilliant way to get inspired, because you were in a community of other writers, which was always a great motivator. Writing can be lonely, and it's good to have like-minded folk to bounce ideas off. Doing the Masters was an excellent transition period for me. I don’t think it changed my writing style particularly, because that’s not how the course was taught. It was more about bringing lots of different writers together and encouraging them to maximise and hone the skills they already had. This was done by listening to professional authors tell you how they go about their own craft, by peer-led editorial groups, where you were getting honest and constructive opinions about your work from people you respected, by inviting agents and publishers to come and talk about their side of the business, and generally, just being in a community of writers. Once you feel part of that community, then writing with the aim of being published starts to become a possible goal rather than an impossible pipe-dream.

My Glasgow Experience

The sense of community among other writers was what I enjoyed the most. Everyone was supportive; there was a great mix of ages and points of view. And when I secured an agent before completing the course, there was a genuine sense of delight from other students - we were all in the same boat & we knew how much it meant to have other folk read - and relate to - the words you made. I think we are all the sum of our parts. Every experience, every connection we make with another person or another mindset shapes the way we see ourselves. University was like a chrysalis for me - I definitely came out with a broader world view, with a stronger sense of self, with a real sense of pride in what I'd achieved, and a deep affection for my two-times alma mater.

Life After Glasgow

My first job after my first degree was as a Police Officer with Strathclyde Police! No direct relevance to my degree perhaps, but an MA from Glasgow definitely made me a better-equipped, more mature, more reflective person to do that job. The first job after my second degree was getting published & becoming a Writer. In between, I was a Press Officer with Glasgow City Council.

I found that having an encouraging tutor patiently await my latest chapters was a great way to get over any writer’s block, and by the end of the two year MLitt, I pretty much had the bones of my first novel ‘The Twilight Time’ laid down. Coming to the end of my second year, I began combing through the Writers and Artists’ Yearbook, sending off a synopsis and three chapters of the book to various literary agents, before I struck lucky and secured my agent. We then began the next stage in the journey: taking the novel to publishers. It’s important to remember that publishing is a very competitive - and subjective- trade, and patience can definitely be a virtue. But it paid off, and thanks to my agent's efforts, I landed a two-book deal with Hodder. I've since gone on to write four books with them & am now with Bloomsbury, who have published 'This Is Where I Am' - a novel about a Somali refugee in Glasgow.

I'm currently working on my sixth novel. I tend to write in the day, not evenings. When I start a project, stuff usually pours out, and you find your way - and your story - on the page. But there's often the sticky middle section, when you've run out of initial steam and haven't yet got your second wind (I liken it to being on a tightrope - you've set out with confidence, get to the middle, then wobble about going : ooh, I don't know if I can do this! That's when I sit down at the PC and give myself a daily word count, say around 500 words, which is quite small & manageable. What I find is, once you start writing, even if you don’t feel hugely inspired that day, a nugget or two of good stuff will come, and you usually end up writing many more words that you had planned. If not, I use the time for going over & editing work I’ve done the day before, and again, that will quite often kick-start a new scene or piece of dialogue that I might begin to work out.

I think it’s important not to see creative writing as a linear process. To me, it’s much more about making a patchwork, that you can stitch together, go back, play about with, until you get the shape and colour that you’re aiming for. If I have a reading event or a festival attendance, then the day might be spent travelling, to do an event at night. If it’s a reasonable distance, I tend to take the train so I can write, or at least do a bit of reading on the way.

My Degree

I quite simply wanted to be a Zoologist and the Zoology department at Glasgow was far superior to any other I had seen. It felt like home and it soon became the case. My fellow graduates were a riot. They weren't friends, they were family and some still are. The Dr's and Professors were always approachable and experts in their fields with a true passion for their individual subjects, which made the lectures a pleasure to attend. The University offered me opportunities to study subjects around my main degree (Math, Microbiology, Environmental Science & Geology) this has allowed me to follow my dream, as well as to diversify into others occupational fields whenever I needed to or chose to.

My Glasgow Experience

I was a member of the Zoology Society, the GU Queen Margaret's Union, General Council and the library. A union is a must to keep you up to date with what's happening and the social events. Making contacts that can last a lifetime is extremely rewarding. Comedy nights were brilliant; some of the most famous stand up comics of today did the first gigs at the union bars. University, if utilised appropriately and intelligently, can provide you with knowledge, contacts, expertise and diverse opportunities that will last you a lifetime.

Life After Glasgow

I have worked in many fields with some very famous people for over five years since initially leaving University. Family then had to become my priority, which moved me towards research or education where I found I had an unbeknown passion for teaching and passing on my passion for science. I am currently a Teacher of Science, KS3 specialist, Learning Coordinator for Science, Director of Project Based Learning and an ECO School Coordinator.

I have enveloped cross-curricular teaching into my colleagues practice. I introduced outdoor projects, project based learning and ECO schools into the trust I work for, bringing the importance of students learning a variety of skills by teachers using a broader spectrum of incorporated subjects. This has resulted in European recognition by the European Parliament. Diversity Awards for my work with our students to increase the Zoological diversity in schools. And Olympic recognition from Lord Coe for our cross curricular work with Sporting projects, which resulted in our attendance at the Paralympics Athletics events, which was unparalleled in uniting what true British spirit embodies. We (the students on my ECO Team) have just won further recognition for our work in energy saving initiatives winning tickets to Rugby matches in Edinburgh and Twickenham.