Internship Opportunities

The Management Discipline within University of Galway’s J.E. Cairnes School of Business and Economics offers competitive internships on two Masters programmes. The internships are available on the MSc in Human Resource Management and the MSc in Management and Sustainability. Our programmes are among the first in the country to offer management internships at the postgraduate level. Students have the option of two pathways to achieve their Masters, The Internship Pathway or the Consultancy Pathway. The internship offering demonstrates University of Galway’s focus on continuous improvement and commitment to providing students with an opportunity for work-based learning.

Why an internship?

The internship offerings aim is to provide entry-level graduate students with an opportunity for work-based learning. It allows students to put their acquired learning to action, gain invaluable work experience and deepen their transferable skills such as leadership, communication, relationship-building and problem solving. The 5-month Internship opportunities offer a combination of transferable business management skills and in some cases, a career head-start. Either way, it gives students a graduate employability edge in the job market on completion of their programme.

The alternative option is the Consultancy pathway; aimed at graduates that are more experienced, employed graduates and entrepreneurs.

What students benefit from an internship?

Internships are aimed at students entering the corporate market at graduate entry level. All internship opportunities are paid, at national and international Internship and graduate rates (minimum wage rules apply).

Interns have the opportunity to apply acquired knowledge to real work experiences, witnessing first-hand the day-to-day job duties they can expect to encounter in a relevant field. In addition to learning the specialised skills of a particular field, transferable skills such as communication, teamwork, and computer proficiency are obtained in an internship, giving interns the edge when entering their chosen career upon graduation. Graduates with Internship experience usually find it easier to gain a graduate career, and may achieve a slightly higher salary.

Experienced students, entrepreneurs and career changers, for the most part, are encouraged to apply for graduate roles and/or self-source higher level roles through our college jobs portal and external sources. There is little benefit to an entry level Internship for most students who already have more than a couple of year’s corporate experience. Employers rarely offer Internships other than at entry level.

For students who do not undertake an internship, our programmes offer an exciting Consultancy Pathway to complete the programme.

Hear what our past students, who undertook their internship have to say in the videos below.

Internship competition at postgraduate level

Gaining an internship at postgraduate level is highly competitive as employers are more selective when interviewing and hiring students that are more educated. For employers, internships provide temporary assistance and a potential pipeline for future hires, but are less essential for day-to-day operations. Given the global and local turmoil of the past few years, internship employers have been particularly selective.

Our students need to be well prepared and resilient to compete in the current market. We have engaged with a Placement Officer to provide our students with the employability skills needed. Students are encouraged to engage meaningfully in all employability skills workshops, 1:1 sessions and tailor their CV to every Internship and graduate role they apply for. This can be time consuming alongside other studies and deadlines, but the benefits are staggeringly successful.

Please note that acceptance into the programmes does not guarantee an internship. The host organisation decides who to interview and who to hire, based on individual student CV and interview performance.

All students, regardless of your chosen pathway, can equally avail of the group and 1:1 Employability Skills workshops, including local and international labour market knowledge in Semester 1 to prepare them for gaining meaningful individual career goals.

Language Skills – Please not that all students seeking internship and/or graduate employment in Ireland MUST have a very high standard of English. Communication skills is annually ranked as the most important skill by all our employers (verbal and written). The use of language assistive technology is not permitted when interviewing for internship or graduate roles.

We have some International Internships and students can self-source internships abroad. Students are given access to our local and International network through our graduate alumni.

What internships opportunities are available?

Over 165 students on our Masters in Human Resource Management and Masters in Strategy, Innovation and People Management were placed in Internship opportunities in the past 3 years.

Students have successfully completed internships at multinational and indigenous organisations, including Boston Scientific, Central Bank, Wayfair, Medtronic, Dawn Meats, LIDL and City Bin. Organisations range in size from large to micro, including start-ups. Students have also worked in government departments, the Health Service Executive and for charities.

We have a dedicated Placement Officer to support students with the sourcing of internship opportunities, and guide students who wish to self-source specific internship roles. Each internship opportunity covers the learning objectives of the Internship and Applied Management Report Module while also promoting analytical thinking, integration across subjects, critical reflection and professional development. The Placement Officer will work with students to ensure that any self-sourced internships are suitable.

How does the process work for students?

Students are encouraged to arrive at University of Galway for the start of their Masters programme with a current graduate CV. During workshops and one-to-one meetings, our Placement Officer guides students in improving their CV and in preparing for interviews. Application and interviewing for internship opportunities begins in Autumn/Semester 1. If a student has not been able to secure an internship before a Spring/semester 2 deadline, s/he will complete the Consultancy pathway, the other equal option for completing the programme.

The academic internship begins in March and is completed by the end of July (5 months).

Internship pathway students MUST complete the full academic internship duration with one employer and submit an Applied Management Report for academic grading.

If mutually agreeable, the student and organisation can agree to a contract extension beyond the academic finish date.

All students, regardless of masters pathway, can equally avail of the group and 1:1 Employability Skills, including local and international labour market knowledge to prepare them for gaining meaningful individual career goals.

More information

For more information about the internships, please contact our Placement Officer Ms. Brid Connolly (brid.connolly@universityofgalway.ie).

For more information about our Masters programmes in Management that offer an internship opportunity, please visit MSc in Human Resource Management and MSc in Management and Sustainability

What Our Students Say

Brian Steede | MSc (HRM), Recruitment Consultant - CPL

Prior to beginning the Masters in Human Resource Management at NUIG, I had identified several aspects of my people management skills that I needed to improve in order to take me to the next level. Upon completion of the Masters, I can safely say it has given me a strong skillset in the demanding world of HR in order to assist me in contributing in what is a challenging industry. Having the opportunity to participate in an internship as part of the MSc Programme was the deciding factor in my decision to enrol. The exposure and knowledge that I gained in this period is something that will stand to me throughout my career, and it gave me that reassurance that I was in the right industry.

Aoife Feeney | MSc (HRM), Recruitment Administrator - CPL

The MSc HRM Internship was a great experience although resilience needed to balance the heavy course load and competitive internship recruitment process. During my Internship, my confidence was enhanced whilst working in an extremely fast-paced environment and in an efficient manner recruiting on behalf of the HSE. Throughout my internship, proficient communication skills and organisational skills were developed whilst hiring and screening candidates on the vaccinators campaign. From my Internship, I gained a permanent contract with Cpl, which I was delighted to achieve. Throughout my role my critical thinking was enhanced and ability to effectively problem solve whilst demonstrating excellent attention to detail and risk assessment capabilities.

Himanshu Deswal | Software Engineer/Product Owner, Masterlink Logistics

My internship has extended my perspectives and horizon in the field of business. The practical experience has assisted me in identifying business disciplines in which I am interested and has opened avenues for my future career. I have figured out which aspects of business irritate me, and which pique my interest. This lesson was invaluable to someone like myself who was undecided about the field of business to pursue. My resume, meanwhile, has made a significant improvement. I have learned a lot in terms of communication and operational skills, and I am happy for the opportunity I had to apply what I studied in college to real-life scenarios, which impressed my employer enough that I was offered a permanent position in September. My co-workers have evolved into friends and mentors who have aided me in my transition from college to career.

Aoife Gibbons | MSc (SIPM), Supply Chain Integration Associate -Wayfair

I am so happy I chose to do a Postgraduate that had an internship built into the programme. In doing this, not only was I able to enhance my employability by gaining valuable skills needed for the world of work, but I was also able to push myself outside of my comfort zone and broaden my horizons when it came to the field I wanted to work in. I got my internship in Supply Chain, which was never an area of work that appealed to me. However, I now have a full time position as a Supply Chain Analyst in the company I did my internship in and I really enjoy my job! The internship gave me the perfect opportunity to put everything I had learned to test but in a safe environment where I was pushed to learn and grow. I really could not recommend it more!

Caoimhe Duke | MSc (SIPM), Graduate Sales & Marketing Intern - Henkel

The internship is an excellent opportunity to take what you have learnt in the classroom and apply it to real life situations. As my first professional business position, it provided me with great insights into the professional world and what it takes to succeed in these roles. It has allowed me to develop essential skills and gain exceptional business experience. Although I was given a lot of responsibility, the mentorship and support from both the company and the college throughout made it a rewarding and enjoyable experience for the first step in my professional career.

Haley Murphy | MSc (HRM), Talent Development Consultant - Version 1

As the placement is part of the course, there is a lot of help and guidance provided to help you in securing your placement. Simple things like CV and interview workshops go a long way in helping you secure your placement, I feel these resources really gave me confidence I wouldn’t have had before beginning my masters. When I began my placement I learnt so much in a very short space of time. There is definitely a big jump from the world of academia to the professional environment but you will have the basic skills from you masters and people are always happy to answer any questions you may have when you join a company so your build knowledge and skills very quickly. It was definitely the most challenging but rewarding six months. I am lucky enough to say am still working for the same company that I completed my placement in and still enjoying every minute of it!

Oreoluwa Oduko | MSc (HRM), Human Resources - Boston Scientific

The internship option of the master’s in Human Resources Management course has opened many doors for me professionally. First off, it eased my career transition from law to HR and has so far equipped me with various skills that can only learned in a work environment. My interaction with different teams during the internship further improved my confidence and project coordination skills. Finally, the applied management project has given much needed insight into future career paths for me and has opened up many conversations about employee engagement, which is very dear to me.