There are many skills you get from studying a language. Depending on your course, you could have modules on grammar, culture, literature, international affairs, translation, history, or politics. What many language students don’t realize is that these subjects actually teach you a lot more about how to work, think, study and questions things, than just the language, or culture itself. These are transferable skills, valuable to a number of different industries and sectors.
One of these important transferable skills is communication. Business is about people; understanding a problem they’re facing, finding a solution, and working around how to convey this solution to them. In studying a language, you learn how to communicate with people from other places and cultures. Through my placement in the Milan Bord Bia office, I use my Italian language skill every day, interacting with other office employees, and Italian customers, but I have also drawn on my other modules from my language degree, in particular translation, culture, and international affairs. From studying Italian and Italy in different ways, e.g. literature, film, current affairs, history, and language, I feel more comfortable in understanding the habits or nuances of Italian life than I would be if I had only studied the language itself with no other emphasis on Italy as a whole. This can be useful to share in-market knowledge with Bord Bia, so that Irish companies can gain more insight and knowledge into the possibility of Italy as a potential market to grow or move into.
Going from Arts or Humanities into the world of Business can seem like a difficult move, but a huge benefit of this graduate programme, is that it combines practical work experience, with an academic qualification from Ireland’s leading business school. You are able to learn theory through the Smurfit Business School modules, and can apply it directly in the field. This adds value to the course, as you can see real-life applications of the theory, and can understand what the modules are really about and how you can add to your set of skills.
Since I hadn’t studied business before beginning the programme, I was initially apprehensive about the academic aspect. However, I quickly realized that the most important thing is to get stuck in to the material, and take initiative for your own learning. The programme is open to graduates from different academic backgrounds, which is perfect for in-class discussions, and provides an opportunity to share different skills and knowledge with each other. A benefit of how the Master’s is taught on the Bord Bia Graduate programme is that you study in Michael Smurfit Business School for a number of fortnightly installments, spread out over the 2 year period. This is different to other graduate programmes, where the education aspect is solely online, or all at the beginning. With the Bord Bia Smurfit combination, you have in-class modules, and post-module assignments. This way, you are able to focus on the module and relevant learning material for the 2 week period, and can then return to the market and complete the assignments remotely. Because of this, there is a connection between the business school and the students, and the opportunity to have discussions with professors, and discuss the module in person, enabling a deeper and more comprehensive education.
In the graduate programme, there are a number of international placements. Having a language is necessary for some placements, e.g. France, Germany, Italy, Spain and China, but there are also international positions in London, New York, Stockholm, Amsterdam, and Dubai where having a language is not a requirement. Language students who have spent some time abroad, e.g. for Erasmus, understand what it is like to go abroad for a period of time. For me, working and living abroad was an important factor in deciding what I wanted to do after college. I was very thankful to be offered a position in Milan, and have really enjoyed the experience here so far. Being in a different country has taught me how business can be conducted differently across cultures, and I enjoy the challenge of learning a new language, and noticing some small improvements in my spoken Italian. Of course, there are other benefits of living in Italy, and I have been able to enjoy my time out of work as well. Milan is a busy, vibrant city, and I’ve met great Italians, international people, and perhaps surprisingly, lots of other young Irish people!
Having said that, if you would like to spend time in Ireland, but are interested in retaining an international view, the Bord Bia Graduate Programme could also suit you perfectly. There are positions in the Dublin office that range across departments, and sectors, and, since it is an international, growing organization, there is frequently opportunity to travel, with regular interactions with other organizations and companies across the world.
In final year, it can be difficult to imagine signing up for another year or more of post-graduate education. Personally, I knew that I needed to have a practical element if I were to continue any sort of study, and the thought of staying put in a classroom for a long period of time did not interest me at all. Even though I am in the process of doing a Master’s Degree, my daily life is in the Bord Bia Milan office. With this graduate programme, you are given valuable insight into what life in an important Irish company is like, and have opportunity to work in a fast-moving, dynamic environment across a range of activities and events. Instead of just understanding business and marketing theory, you learn in-depth what real marketing entails, and how Ireland’s food and drink industry is perceived on the world stage.
With my own placement in the Milan office, I’m constantly in communication with other offices around the world, and with many different Italian companies and organizations, working on behalf of Irish companies to find relevant customers, and markets abroad. I knew that I didn’t want an easy or boring job after college, and thankfully, this is neither of those things. When you learn a language, you are constantly being tested, it takes a long time to get to a level of fluency, but the work you put in is worth it, you can see that you are improving, and it is a rewarding feeling. This is not an easy, relaxed job, but you are capable of doing it, and there is a group of graduates to share experiences, and compare notes with! Although you are given independence, and responsibility, you are not alone, and have not one but two support systems: Bord Bia and Michael Smurfit Business School.
Since Ireland is a small country, many young people have daily interaction with the food and drinks industry, whether that be through farming, food production, family businesses, or on the retail side. The food and drinks industry is one of Ireland’s most important, fast-growing industries, and through the graduate programme, you are given the opportunity to understand it from the inside, and can see how the important issues of today’s world relate to the food and drinks industry, and where Ireland’s place is in all of it. From doing this programme, I can better appreciate what we have, and how we can do better in Ireland. Being in Italy has given me the opportunity to compare the Irish and Italian food and drinks industries, and enabled me to look at our industry from the outside, and how we can best adapt and update our industry to be a leader in different aspects. Many language graduates might think they aren’t qualified enough to work in this industry, but the most important thing is attitude, and interest. It’s all about people, and how you apply yourself to work hard.
In conclusion, deciding what to do after university is not easy. It can be stressful and overwhelming, and you might feel you’re limited to teaching, translating or interpreting with a language degree. Thankfully this is not the case. Languages are important, and teach you a lot about other cultures and populations, but also about yourself and your own culture. Studying how another group of people communicate helps you examine your own communication skills from an outside perspective, and can open up your mind to the possibility of moving abroad and further exploring other cultures and languages. I think more language students should recognize that they have valuable skills from their degrees that can be applied to many different sectors and businesses. The Bord Bia graduate programme combines practical experience and theoretical knowledge in an effective manner, enabling you to take on the world through an interesting, dynamic sector. Overall, it is an all-round learning experience that language students who are looking for something interesting to do after university could really benefit from.