Dr Anthony Kiely, Lecturer, Department of Physics, UCC

Current job title:

Lecturer, Department of Physics, UCC

What appeals to you most about your current role?

I enjoy the mix of activities over the course of the day; giving lectures, writing code or discussing some new results over a whiteboard. There’s also a pleasant aspect of chatting with likeminded people in both the other staff and visiting researchers.

Course/subjects studied in UCC and year of graduation:

I graduated from UCC with an undergraduate degree in Physics and Mathematics in 2013 and a PhD in Physics in 2017.

What influenced or helped you decide to study this degree?

At school I really enjoyed studying maths, applied maths and physics the most out of all my other subjects, in part due to some wonderful teachers. On account of that, it just seemed like a very natural choice.

Most relevant main or subsidiary topic studied:

I’m not sure how much I’ve needed it, but my favourite module was definitely Abstract Algebra in my first year. The lecturer, Prof. Des MacHale, was really engaging and always told us lots of interesting mathematical anecdotes.

Best memory of UCC:

One of my favourite memories was an organised trip to CERN. It was great fun and helped everyone get to know each other better. It led to a small tight knit class with great camaraderie throughout the rest of the course.

What role do you feel UCC played in getting you to where you are today?

I think the teaching at UCC gave me a very solid grounding in fundamental physics and pure mathematics. The academic staff being very friendly and approachable was definitely a critical part of this.

The physics department also offered lots of opportunities for research projects over the summer.These projects helped give me an insight into what active research really entailed and were great practice for learning to work independently.

Brief overview of work history:

After completing my PhD in 2017, I moved to Bilbao in Spain. I worked as a postdoctoral researcher at the University of the Basque Country there. After spending some time there, I took up my present post as a lecturer at UCC.

What advice would you give to current students that are about to graduate/enter the job market?

Be aware of both your unique skills and also your weaknesses when compared with other candidates. With this in mind, try to work on any potential “holes” in your CV to become more well rounded e.g. more experience programming or public speaking etc.

Do you feel there are any major gaps in your education which should be filled for future students?

It would definitely be beneficial if students were exposed to more programming earlier, although I think this has already improved drastically since when I was studying.

Eoin Murphy, Insights Analyst at Riot Games

Current job title :

Insights Analyst at Riot Games

What appeals to you most about your current role?

I love solving interesting problems. This role gives me an opportunity to solve many very different problems in an industry that I’m passionate about.

Course/subjects studied in UCC and year of graduation :

I graduated with an undergraduate degree in Astrophysics in 2009 and I proceeded to complete a PhD under the supervision of Dr. Denise Gabuzda in 2013.

What influenced or helped you decide to study this degree ?

Maths, Applied Maths and Physics were easily my favourite subjects in secondary school. I had also been very interested in astronomy and space science but I wasn’t sure when I was filling out my CAO if I wanted to complete an Astronomy degree or a Physics degree. After research I decided to apply to UCC as I liked how I could spend the first two years studying normal physics with everyone else and then make a more educated decision in 3rd year regarding my final degree. Additionally, even after the third year, the course modules for Astrophysics still featured many other areas within Physics and I felt as though I wouldn’t be restricted in my choices post my undergraduate degree.

Most relevant main or subsidiary topic studied:

All of the modules in the Physics degree in UCC teach you how to problem solve and that’s easily the most important skill that I use day to day in my current role. Additionally, we were expected to teach ourselves new software and analysis methodologies throughout the degree. This focus on ensuring that we would be able to self-learn has been critical for me as I apply my numerical and problem solving skills to new disciplines.

Best memory of UCC:

While at UCC I joined the WARPS society where I made many of my closest friends. My best memory of UCC was the year I directed WARPCON, the student run tabletop convention held each January across the UCC campus. That weekend is still one of my fondest memories and I still return to UCC every January to attend the event. For the past 5 years I have been the MC for the table quiz and charity auction so, in some ways, it is like I never left!

What role do you feel UCC played in getting you to where you are today?

I don’t think I’d be working at Riot Games today if it wasn’t for UCC. In addition to giving me the skills I need every day to do my job, UCC introduced me to the tabletop gaming hobby which I believe is one of the reasons I was hired at Riot Games.

Brief overview of work history:

After completing my PhD I moved to Dublin to join AIB as a Data Scientist. I worked on the Data Science team at AIB for two years before helping to set up and lead the Research & Innovation team at AIB. I left this team in October 2018 to join the EU Insights team at Riot Games.

What advice would you give to current students that are about to graduate/enter the job market?

Don’t worry about how your degree may dictate the roles you may find in industry. A person with a PhD in Astrophysics can get a job working at a video games company! Someone with a PhD in Quantum mechanics can work as an editor at a science journal. Apply for the roles you are most passionate about. Your UCC physics degree will have taught you the problem solving skills that are critical across multiple industries.

Do you feel there are any major gaps in your education which should be filled for future students?

I would have appreciated a module on a programming language such as ‘Python’ during my physics degree. While I remember having a 5 credit module on C Programming in second year, this wasn’t very useful to me during my PhD and subsequent career. Python has a huge number of useful physics modules as well as being the programming language of choice of data analysis. I thought myself Python during my PhD at UCC as I needed to know it in order to complete my research. I think future physics students would benefit from knowing this programming language both as they undertake their degree and after their degree if they choose to find a job in industry.

Any other comments you wish to share:

I’d just like to say hello to everyone at the Physics department who I haven’t spoken to in far too long. I’d especially like to thank Denise for giving me the opportunity to pursue a PhD with her. I’d also like to say sorry to her one last time for leaving academia!

Frances Lordan, Senior Process Engineer at Intel Ireland

Current job title:

Senior Process Engineer at Intel Ireland

What appeals to you most about your current role?

• Self-management
• Problem-solving
• New challenges every week
• Fast-paced environment

Course/subjects studied in UCC and year of graduation:

BSc Physics 2009

What influenced or helped you decide to study this degree?

I enjoyed the problem solving elements of Maths and Physics in Secondary School. I also appreciated that there wasn't as much rote learning in these subjects compared to others.

Most relevant main or subsidiary topic studied:

Semiconductor Physics

Best memory of UCC:

Cups of tea and chats in our student house.

What role do you feel UCC played in getting you to where you are today?

UCC instilled in me a sense of confidence and independence which has helped me throughout my PhD and my current role.

Brief overview of work history (to highlight the path to where you are now):

2009-2013         PhD in Physics (nanotech) at UCD

2013-2014         Gap year travelling to India, South-east Asia and Australia

2014-2018         Process Engineer at Intel Ireland

2018-present      Senior Process Engineer at Intel Ireland

What advice would you give to current students that are about to graduate/enter the job market?

Use the careers office at UCC to find out about the options available to you.

For physics students, there are many opportunities in areas that may not be immediately obvious. My class of 2009 are working in fields including Finance, Engineering, Energy, Risk, Gaming, Academia, Scientific Publishing and Tech.

Don’t neglect soft skills such as presentation skills, people skills and general communication skills. No matter what area you find yourself in, these will benefit your career.

Do you feel there are any major gaps in your education which should be filled for future students?

It would have been beneficial to have had more coding modules within the Physics course, particularly Python and SQL.

Any links to work profiles / LinkedIn etc you would like to share:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/frances-lordan-8a138667/

Any other comments you wish to share:

Enjoy your time at UCC!

Ian O'Driscoll, Associate Director, R&D, Alcon Ireland

Current job title:

Associate Director, R&D, Alcon Ireland

What appeals to you most about your current role?

Working with great people and with a company that has a fantastic culture, all while working on products that allow people to see after cataract surgery

Course/subjects studied in UCC and year of graduation:

Advanced Quantum Mechanics, Advanced Electromagnetism, Advanced Condensed Matter Physics, Atomic and Molecular Physics, Lasers and Photonics, Physics and Semiconductor physics, Research Project. 2004

What influenced or helped you decide to study this degree?

Met with Prof. Tony Deeney while I was in 6th year in secondary school and he had a big influence on my decision.

Most relevant main or subsidiary topic studied:

Optics and Photonics and Semiconductor physics

Best memory of UCC:

Small group of 20 or physics students who were all quite like-minded people and all got on really well.

What role do you feel UCC played in getting you to where you are today?

The ability to self learn and the importance of evidence based decision making.

Brief overview of work history (to highlight the path to where you are now):

Degree in Hons Physics, PhD in Semiconductor Physics in the Tyndall National Institute (3 years)

Postdoctoral Researcher in Photonics with Cardiff University (4 years)

SFI SIRG Fellow in Photonics at Tyndall National Institute (4 years)

R&D Engineer at Alcon (2 years)

R&D Manager at Alcon

Associate Director of R&D at Alcon

What advice would you give to current students that are about to graduate/enter the job market?

Industry is going heavily towards automation. Address this gap. There are huge opportunities outside of academia.

Do you feel there are any major gaps in your education which should be filled for future students?

Lack of industry exposure: eg good manufacturing practice, quality, validation experience.

Any other comments you wish to share:

Students should actively email academic professors and people in industry in order to reach out and make contact. It still amazes me how little few people do this and how effective it can be.

Joseph Cashell, Secondary Science Teacher

Current job title:

Secondary Science Teacher

What appeals to you most about your current role?

I enjoy teaching science at this level (lower secondary) as the kids are fun to work with and are so amazed by a lot of the concepts I get to teach.

Course/subjects studied in UCC and year of graduation:

BSc Astrophysics, graduated 2013.

MSc Physics (Photonics), graduated 2015.

What influenced or helped you decide to study this degree?

I was always a quizical child and as my questions got more fundamental physics was the subject that answered them, it only seemed natural I go on to study it in university.

Most relevant main or subsidiary topic studied:

I guess seeing as I went on to become a teacher, PALS (Peer-Assisted Learning Support) was one of the most relevant things I did in my time in university even if it wasn’t technically a module but it was my first real teaching experience.

Best memory of UCC:

Since I was in UCC for nearly six years, it is really hard to pick one but I was always a big fan of lunches in Kampus Kitchen (which I’ve heard is no more, being replaced by the Ted Neville cafe).

What role do you feel UCC played in getting you to where you are today?

Well I guess providing me with the degree would be the biggest and most important role but UCC didn’t really have any part in my decision, that was quite the fluke really though funnily enough I did meet the now former UCC president, Michael Murphy in Hanoi in 2016.

Brief overview of work history (to highlight the path to where you are now):

Masters Student/Researcher, Tyndall National Insitute, Cork, Ireland:
Oct 2013 - Apr 2015

Wellspring International School Hanoi, Ha Noi, Viet Nam:
July 2015 - May 2017

Vietnam Australia School Hanoi, Ha Noi, Viet Nam:
August 2017 - May 2019

What advice would you give to current students that are about to graduate/enter the job market?

Don’t think the only thing a physics degree can get you is a research or industry position. To a lot of employers out there, a physics degree seems to be seen as a problem-solving degree and almost every industry needs a problem-solver every now and then.

Do you feel there are any major gaps in your education which should be filled for future students?

None that I can think of but then again, it’s been a few years since I’ve been in university now so it’s hard to remember.

Any links to work profiles / LinkedIn etc you would like to share:

https://ie.linkedin.com/in/joseph-cashell-18a44597

Any other comments you wish to share:

Join Physoc, I’m happy to see that they’re still doing a great job!

Kieran McCarthy, Head of A-Level Physics and PSHE Coordinator at St James’ Catholic High School

Current job title:

Head of A-Level Physics and PSHE Coordinator at St James’ Catholic High School

What appeals to you most about your current role?

Working with young people in a job which is a purely social enterprise. Having a job where no two days are the same and every day presents new challenges and successes.

Course/subjects studied in UCC and year of graduation:

Education in Physical Sciences / Physics and Astrophysics, 2013

What influenced or helped you decide to study this degree?

Teaching is what I’ve wanted to do since being a young child, so the opportunity to learn to teach during my undergrad (through the Education in Physical Sciences program) was the perfect opportunity for me.

Most relevant main or subsidiary topic studied:

The general skills of problem-solving have been transferrable to many different, and sometimes unexpected, dimensions of the job of teaching.

Best memory of UCC:

Impossible to pick just one! Making lifelong friends both in and outside of my course. Skydiving with the parachute club was a highlight.

What role do you feel UCC played in getting you to where you are today?

UCC gave me a great foundation in teaching physics that I have continued to develop through my career.

Brief overview of work history (to highlight the path to where you are now):

After graduating in 2013, I moved to London to initially work as a cover teacher and then got a job as a science teacher in a secondary school through an agency. I have now been at the same school for 5 years. In this school I have progressed from science teacher to head of A-Level Physics, whole-school PSHE coordinator and most recently Assistant Head of Year.

What advice would you give to current students that are about to graduate/enter the job market?

Don’t limit yourself by fixating on a particular end-point; be open to hearing out any peripheral opportunities that come your way. I never planned on moving to London but it is the best thing I’ve ever done!

Laura Horan, Technical Project Lead and Sensor Specialist

Padraic Morrissey, Technology Manager of PIXAPP, World’s First Open Access Photonic Packaging Pilot Lin

Current job title:

Technology Manager of PIXAPP, World’ First Open Access Photonic Packaging Pilot Line

What appeals to you most about your current role?

 In my role as Photonics Technology Manager, I find the diversity and variety of the work the most rewarding aspect. We work with some of the biggest companies in the world to develop technology solutions, this means there are constantly new problems to solve and exciting cutting edge research to get involved in.

Course/subjects studied in UCC and year of graduation:

Single Honours Physics Degree. Physics, Mechanics, Quantum Mechanics, Photonics

Most relevant main or subsidiary topic studied:

I think this would definitely be the Photonics course that I took in my final year. It provided a great foundation to the work I would go on to do in my PhD.

Best memory of UCC:

My best memory of UCC is meeting my wife there!

What role do you feel UCC played in getting you to where you are today?

UCC had a large role in getting me where I am right now. My Physics degree provided a great background in critical thinking and problem solving, which I use daily in my current role. The strong links the Physics Dept. has with the Tyndall National Institute and industry, made it easy to transition from an academic environment to the applied sciences.

Brief overview of work history (to highlight the path to where you are now):

After completing my undergraduate degree in UCC, I started my PhD at the Tyndall National Institute. My PhD focussed on Photonics, where I was designing, testing and developing new optically integrated circuits. After my PhD, I worked in the Integrated Photonics Group at Tyndall as a postdoctoral researcher, where I was developing new PICs for high speed optical communications. In 2016, I joined the Photonics Packaging Group at Tyndall as a researcher, where I was leading EU projects and developing standardized photonic packaging technologies leading to new optical and electrical packaging schemes for Si and InP based photonic systems.

Do you feel there are any major gaps in your education which should be filled for future students?

From a technical point of view, I don’t think there are any gaps that should be filled for future students. However, I do find that since a lot of EU projects I work on are spread across several countries, knowing a second European language (French/German) would be very useful.

Sorcha Healy, Data Analyst, McAfee

Current job title:

Data Scientist

What appeals to you most about your current role?

Relevance to real world, faster pace, applied role. Lots of data to play with

Course/subjects studied in UCC and year of graduation:

PhD Physics 2003

What influenced or helped you decide to study this degree?

Personal love of problem solving and mathematics/physics

Most relevant main or subsidiary topic studied:

Physics

Best memory of UCC:

Physics staff minding my daughter while I visited my supervisor. Family atmosphere.

What role do you feel UCC played in getting you to where you are today?

High standard of theoretical physics tuition

Brief overview of work history (to highlight the path to where you are now):

• Postdoc
• Civil service (business skills)
• Industry (data science)

What advice would you give to current students that are about to graduate/enter the job market?

Don’t narrow options too much or specialise too much too early. Job you do in the future may not exist yet. Pick up professional qualiifications where possible.

Do you feel there are any major gaps in your education which should be filled for future students?

Coding and software development practices

Any other comments you wish to share:

Stephen Fahy is the greatest influence on my career as someone who just takes an interesting problem and works with it, from finance to quantum mechanics to statistics.

Vince McCarthy, Co-founder & CEO of The Festival of Curiosity

Current job title: 

Co-founder & CEO of The Festival of Curiosity 

What appeals to you most about your current role?

I am currently the CEO of The Festival of Curiosity which is a job that I never would have predicted I would be in when I studied in UCC. The aspect of the role that appeals to me the most is working with very interesting people from a variety of backgrounds including science, arts and design. 

Course/subjects studied in UCC and year of graduation:

I studied Physics and Mathematics (Joint Honours) and graduated in 2004. 

What influenced or helped you decide to study this degree?

I attended the UCC Open Day in 1999/2000 and saw the potential of a Physics degree so I knew it was for me. 

Most relevant main or subsidiary topic studied:

Even though I wanted to study Physics I ended up selecting a joint degree with Maths which helped me with my Physics and added a lot of variety to my four years in UCC.

Best memory of UCC:

I have a lot of good memories of UCC. I remember being at the Lower Grounds during the usual sunny weather at exam time, taking a break with friends. I really enjoyed my course and I was very lucky to have a great group of friends, who made my time in UCC very memorable.

What role do you feel UCC played in getting you to where you are today?

My time in UCC has been the main platform in my life to get to where I am now. My course in Physics and Maths opened up a lot of opportunities, including working in Mozambique with the Department of Foreign Affairs and being the Curator for Dublin City of Science in 2012. I would never have assumed doing a Physics degree could provide these opportunities and UCC gave me the ability to create a pathway through life that has been varied and unexpected. 

Brief overview of work history (to highlight the path to where you are now):

I have worked in a variety of roles after university and had great opportunities to work on developing science and technology projects in Mozambique with Irish Aid; become a team member on a startup youth mental health and technology organisation; and become the Curator for the Dublin City of Science 2012 which engaged 600,000 people across the country. 

I then setup The Festival of Curiosity which is Dublin’s international festival of science, arts, design and technology with an audience of over 50,000 people every year. 

I am also the Chair of the International School of Dublin, President of the Ireland United States Alumni Association, Director of the European Network of American Alumni Associations and on the Board of Directors of Respond Housing Association 

What advice would you give to current students that are about to graduate/enter the job market?

When I think back to my time in UCC, I suppose it would have been good to understand that the skills I learned in UCC were just as important as the subject matter. It is important to do well at exams, but focussing on developing your social and soft skills can make you more adaptable for whatever future career path you take. 

Do you feel there are any major gaps in your education which should be filled for future students?

If I had the chance to do my degree in UCC over again, I would meet as many people as I could who are working in different roles and industries. I think more opportunities should be created to meet alumni from various backgrounds to give a realistic view of what’s possible and help identify pathways to success.  

Any links to work profiles / LinkedIn etc you would like to share:

Website: www.festivalofcuriosity.ie

Twitter: https://twitter.com/vincemccarthy

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/vincent-mc-carthy-7305669/