Donegal Daily in conjunction with Donegal ETB will be profiling a number of individuals who have successfully completed one of the many training programmes Donegal ETB have to offer.
As Letterkenny Training Centre take applications for their current evening course term, Donegal Daily spoke with Emma Murray, 24, who completed a Training and Development course at Letterkenny Training Centre.
Emma now works in Debenhams in Galway as a Store Trainer and Personal Shopper.
“My job is about training people and bringing out the best in them. The Training and Development award was an invaluable qualification for me because I had practiced it all before. I still use the notes I have from the ETB one year on,” Emma told Donegal Daily.
Emma has a third-level degree in English and Spanish from NUI Galway along with a TEFL qualification. She was working part-time in retail in Letterkenny when she took on the evening classes with Donegal ETB, Letterkenny Training Centre.
“It was an intense course and it is absolutely brilliant for your CV.” she said. As the Training & Development programme was certified by QQI (Quality & Qualifications Ireland), Emma can now develop and deliver her own training programmes.
Emma attended four-hour classes on two evenings each week for 12 weeks. “We fit a lot into a couple of months and I preferred it that way. I like to dive into a challenge and I work better when I have a goal to work towards,” Emma said.
“There were people from all walks of life. People who were working full time, part-time like myself, and people who were unemployed and doing the course to start over with their careers.”
Emma and her fellow students completed assignments around the methods of developing training programmes as well as delivering effective training. Their tutor Barbara Corkery supports the students through the programme.
“Barbara has been delivering the course for years and was so helpful. When you get on well with the tutor you have motivation to work harder. She was always emailing us and giving us extra information. I always know she is just an email away and would have no problem answering my questions now,” Emma said.
The grand finale was a presentation in front of their tutor and classmates.
“The presentations were my favourite part – we pretended we were delivering our course to the class so you actually got the experience of standing up and doing the course as if it were real.”
Emma left the course with a wealth of knowledge, not just regarding training, but but also in regard to the subject areas of her classmates. “There was such great diversity in the room – from mechanics, home interiors, cooking, hairdressing. The class was so interactive and everyone in the group got involved,” she said.
Emma took time after completing the course in December 2015 to focus on her interests in fashion journalism and styling, She has a successful lifestyle blog ‘The Fashion Chair’ and interned at London Fashion Week and Belfast Fashion Week.
Emma began working in Debenhams before Christmas last year. She is involved in training new staff members and devises an annual training calendar, based on staff training needs. Emma would arrange further training for staff to ensure they are fully training for all aspects of their employment.
“Whenever I first started I was completely thrown in the deep end, that’s the only way to learn. This is the role that I have been working towards and I’m going to keep focussed on it. I would love to progress with the personal shopping as well,” Emma said.
She plans to support her Training and Development qualification with other courses also certified by QQI.
“Down the line I would like to have my own academy or school where we have different courses in relation to everything to do with fashion styling. Fashion journalism is an area that I’m really interested in as well. I learned that whatever you put in you get out, and a lot of opportunities can come from your blog if you work really hard at it,” she said.
For further information on these programs and others contact Julie on 074-9120527 or 074 9120500
Email: eveningcoursesltc@donegaletb.ie
Visit: www.donegaletb.ie
Click here for further details on the course.
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