Joe English is a 24 year old student of Waterford Institute of Technology who is in his final year of the BBs in Business (Hons- General Stream) degree. In his free time, he enjoys reading (religiously- on a daily basis in fact) and is usually found doing so in a café while listening to music through his headphones- Maroon 5 being his favourite artist. He also enjoys swimming and going to the gym- but one of his true passions are for fashion, and the business student also considers himself to be something of an ‘aftershave connoisseur’.
Joe has uniquely already completed a BSc in Horticulture degree in WIT (in addition to his current course), and through studying various modules within it that related to fields like marketing, management and finance, Joe got himself a taste for it and found himself more interested in pursuing a business-concentrated degree. The final year student stated that he could never have premeditated his decision, but is very happy with it, and has found himself particularly interested in the field of human resource management. However, college was not the first time in which the world of business and horticulture aligned for the 24 year old.
He is currently a managing director of Ballybeg CDP (Community Development Project), a community project which aims to enable members of the Ballybeg community to realise their own potential, improve the quality of their lives, identify/address the needs and issues of the community and to create a cooperative dynamic that serves to benefit the community. The CDP provides organic produce to many local restaurants and also serves as a training centre for those who wish to seek further education in horticulture, and the project relies on Joe to provide them with business-related and horticultural expertise for these aspects. Before becoming a managing director Joe also acted as a general manager for the project. Although Joe enjoys horticulture, he wishes to broaden his horizons and explore business through the scope of other industries.
Joe was quick to identify his strengths when asked, referring to himself as “terribly organised”, with an underlying ability to strategically analyse a situation from the outset to such a point so that he can make a problem manageable. The young graduate also considers himself to be very honest, never afraid to give his opinion in any situation. Although difficult to make considerations for the future, in five years time Joe would like to see himself in a well-paying job, financially independent and happy, citing that his one of his biggest aspirations in life would be to become a brand management intern for LVMH, one of the top global companies in designer brands (such as Louis Vuitton, Moët, Hennessy, Dior etc.) Joe enjoys working with people and ideally would like to explore a career in HR or management, as making decisions and managing operations goes with his liking of having things organised.
The young man stated that his life experiences have molded him into who he is as a person, even maturing him beyond his actual age- and describes himself as a self-motivated individual who wishes to create success for himself by his own merit. Joe concluded our interview by providing his own advice for graduates- not to stress about the future, as although it may feel like there is only one route that can be taken to get to where you want to go- there are in fact, many ways to get there.
Joe can be contacted by Email.
South-East Grads 