Master graduates hope for better life in Oz

SHE started college when her prospects never looked brighter and finished when they never looked worse.

Yesterday Jayne Murphy was among another group of our best and brightest who left Cork Airport in search of greener pastures.

Speaking before her departure, the 25-year-old from Cullen, Co Cork — who graduated recently with a first class honours masters qualification — expressed the hope that Ireland’s new government would make job creation a priority.

Jayne revealed how she and a group of friends decided that “enough was enough” after a year of unsuccessful job hunting and decided to move to Australia.

“I did my undergraduate studies in UCC, and I graduated in 2007 with a first class honours degree in commerce,” said Jayne. “So I moved to Dublin to look for better opportunities, and was advised to retrain and upskill.”

Jayne decided to do her postgraduate studies in retail management, which cost her close to €10,000. She received a first class honours and received a gold medal for her exceptional results. However, she and a friend still could not secure a job.

“It was quite a niche course so we expected the odds of securing employment would be good, but all I managed to get was 12 hours working in a shop in Dublin. On that I couldn’t afford much after my rent so I decided ‘enough of this’ and started looking into options overseas.

“One lecturer at my graduation even asked me what my plans for the future were, and when I said we were planning to emigrate, he agreed that it seemed like the only option.”

Jayne says she decided to travel to Melbourne with a group of friends — all masters graduates with qualifications including IT, the food industry and management — to seek out opportunities that are just not available here. “I am going to give myself the two years in Australia and see. I might love it so much I may never come back. There is a huge difference in opportunities there — in my sector the pay is nearly twice as high but rent is also higher. I’m not sad to leave, but will miss my friends and family.

“I always wanted to go to Australia, but definitely not under these circumstances. Hopefully things will be better when we return.”