More Than 700 Tipperary Students Attend Coolmore Careers Day
The inaugural Coolmore Careers Day, in association with Fethard Patrician Presentation Secondary school – which proposed the initiative – took place in the impressive Fethard Town Park today, 10th April. Students also had the opportunity to visit Coolmore and see the stallion yard at first hand along with mares and foals in their paddocks.
More than 700 students (4th – 6th Year) from 15 post primary schools across Co Tipperary availed of the opportunity to explore dozens of farming, trade and professional career types on their doorstep at this Careers Day dedicated to bloodstock, farming, tourism, hospitality and associated sectors. Participating schools hailed from Fethard, Clonmel, Cahir, Cashel, Thurles, Ballingarry and Kilsheelan.
The Careers Day showcased a range of careers in these sectors, drawing on real life examples from the world-renowned Coolmore group. Bloodstock is especially people-intensive, often requiring more people than horses in caring for some of the most valuable bloodstock on the globe. In addition to the stud operation, the racing arm in Ballydoyle and the farming enterprise, the group has several local interests in the tourism and hospitality sector. The Cashel Palace Hotel and its Michelin starred restaurant along with Mikey Ryan’s are all in Cashel while 2024 saw the opening of Sadler’s Restaurant & Bar in Fethard. As a result, the Coolmore group directly employs over 1,300 staff whose families live and work in the region.
As part of the Careers Day, farriers and trades people did live demonstrations and each office-based discipline had a stall staffed by a member of the Coolmore team, showcasing the very wide range of careers available across these industries. Stalls were also hosted by University of Limerick, Kildalton Agricultural College, Gurteen Agricultural College and CAFRE – the College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise in Northern Ireland.
Commenting, Billy Walsh, Principal of Fethard Patrician Presentation Secondary school said: “Bloodstock, farming and tourism are the lifeblood of Co Tipperary and we are blessed to have Coolmore and Ballydoyle on our doorstep. Farming and bloodstock are two of the major employers in this region and they also support tourism, heritage, sustainable communities and our environment. Today’s visit shows that whether a student is considering a Solas apprenticeship, Agricultural College, or university, there are careers to suit all interests and talents and that’s something to celebrate.”
Commenting, Tom Lynch, Farm Manager, Coolmore said: “Each year Coolmore employs numerous apprentices and graduates who cut their teeth working with some of the best in the industry. We wanted to showcase to these students the array of opportunities they have on their doorstep. It’s obviously important for young people to travel and get an education, but we want them to know that there is a wide array of rewarding jobs – some of them very high-powered – if they choose to return to the community they grew up in.
At Coolmore we are privileged to be part of a bloodstock industry that supports a €2.46bn economic impact nationally and over 30,000 jobs. Tipperary also has a distinction of being one of the counties with the lowest outbound work commutes. That says a lot about sustainable communities and work-life balance.
As well as the large number of people who work directly with the horses, constant growth means we also require plumbers, electricians, carpenters etc. Office staff include accountants, IT, marketing and health and safety staff.
Farming and gardening provide a large number of roles including agricultural mechanics while the hospitality end of things also offers a wide range of careers options.
We’d love to see this event growing from strength to strength, as a showcase for the much broader farming and bloodstock sector.”
Illustrative jobs and career options across the bloodstock, farming and tourism sectors include:
- Bloodstock: farrier, groom, stable hand, exercise rider, vet, veterinary nurse, dentist, stud secretary, animal nutritionists, geneticist, biotechnologists, laboratory staff, sports turf management.
- Farming: farm hands, farm technicians, farm manager, crop / livestock specialists, agricultural scientists, contractors, agronomists, tree surgeons, arborists, gardeners, horticulturalists, agri-tech specialist, agricultural mechanics.
- Trades: electricians, plumbers, mechanics but also selected carpentry and building trades.
- Professions: Accountants, IT, digital and marketing, design and creative, and health and safety staff.
- Tourism and hospitality: chefs, commis chefs, waiting staff, bar staff, events manager, food and beverage, housekeeping, marketing, digital communications.
Participating schools:
- Fethard Patrician Presentation
- Scoil Ruan, Killenaule
- Cashel Community School
- CBS Thurles
- Ursuline Secondary School, Thurles
- Presentation S.S. Clonmel
- Loreto, Clonmel
- CTC Clonmel
- CTI Clonmel
- Cahir Community School
- Col. Mhuire, Thurles
- Rockwell College
- Ballingarry
