"My life's gone from zero to a hundred, but CUBS UCC make sure I'm never overwhelmed"
Shane Barrett, Cork Senior Hurler, and third year BSc Accounting student in CUBS UCC.
As a number of key dates for the CAO process draw nearer, two of Ireland’s most promising young talents are urging anybody filling out the form this year to consider putting University College Cork as their top choice.
Rebecca Maye, a star player with the Irish senior women’s indoor hockey team, is in her final year of an accounting degree in Cork University Business School (CUBS) at UCC. Cork senior hurler Shane Barrett, meanwhile, is in his third and penultimate year of the same course.
Despite their huge success in their sports, both players say it’s just as important for them to aim high in their academics as well as on the field. They each believe that studying accounting at CUBS has given them the perfect opportunity to excel in both areas.
Growing up, Carrigaline native Rebecca always had her heart set on staying close to home and attending UCC. In her later years, when she found a flair for accounting at secondary school, her decision was cemented by the fact that the university offered a top-class accounting course (CK202) through Cork University Business School.
Another big swaying factor for Rebecca was UCC’s huge variety of clubs and societies. In her four years since becoming a student at the university, Rebecca has been co-captain of their dance club, a committee member of the Accounting & Finance society, a member of UCC Peer Support and much more.
One of her proudest accomplishments is her work with the ‘UCC Formula Student’ club, which sees students annually embark to design and build a formula-spec racing car. The group have competed against top universities from every corner of the world with some of their recent models. Rebecca now serves as Head of Media, Marketing and HR for the club, which she says has been a great addition to her mandatory coursework.
“Throughout the degree and various electives you touch on pretty much every aspect of business, but marketing wouldn’t be a key component,” she says. “With UCC Formula Student, it’s nice to take those marketing basics that fed through in little bits with my degree and kind of build that up through the club in a fun way, without having to study any extra modules.”
Her involvement in all these clubs and societies is hectic, Rebecca admits, but also something she missed greatly during the pandemic. A return to on-campus activity over the past academic year has been “a really welcome change, and a lovely way to finish out the degree.” It has, however, also coincided with the return of indoor hockey now that restrictions are lifted.
“I’ve gone from zero to a hundred out of nowhere with all the commitments, so it’s been a crazy busy year, but it’s been brilliant. I won my first Irish cap last December, which was a dream come true. At club level, we’ve also picked up a good few pieces of silverware, so we’ve really bounced back from the severe lull and lack of training during the pandemic.”
This success in hockey wouldn’t have been possible, Rebecca says, without the support from lecturers and staff at CUBS. “They’ve really minimised the pressure I’ve been under throughout final year. If ever I couldn’t attend a lecture, they made sure it was recorded and I had full access to it online. That was such a relief, because a lot of times my training with the Irish hockey team was in Dublin. My lecturers made sure that if I was being pulled across the country for hockey games or training, then I didn’t have to worry about being in a lecture hall in Cork at the same time.”
Rebecca’s been so happy with her experience at UCC, in fact, that she hopes to stay there once she wraps up her final exams next month. Her undergraduate degree included a paid work placement in her third year, which saw Rebecca find great success in PwC.
PwC have already offered to sponsor her Master’s in accounting next year, which she hopes to study in UCC again. After that, she’s already accepted a three-year graduate role in PwC’s tax department.
“PwC are a stellar team to work for, and they mirror UCC in a lot of ways, in terms of the support they’ve given to me and my sports career. I’ve had conversations with managers and partners there about how I’m likely to be working for PwC during my prime sporting years, and they’re prepared to support and accommodate me through all the commitments that will come with that. A lot of players I look up to have retired from hockey at a fairly young age, so it’s great to know that, thanks to CUBS and PwC, I’ll have a good career in accounting to keep me going whenever the sport does taper off.”
Much like Rebecca, Bantry’s Shane Barrett initially chose to study at UCC thanks to its proximity to his family home. He is, he reflects, “blessed to have a leading university on the doorstep”.
Since beginning his accounting degree at Cork University Business School (CUBS) in UCC, the location has become just one of many reasons that Shane feels blessed to be a student there. “The BSc Accounting degree is the perfect fit for me,” Shane shares. “The programme combines a great mix of accounting and business-related subjects, which means I’m not pigeon-holed, and there are so many areas that I can decide to pursue once I graduate. It also provides significant exemptions from each of the professional accounting bodies. I’m currently in the third year of the programme and am completing a six-month paid placement within a leading professional services firm. I’m getting such invaluable experience from it, which I hope will make a big difference to my future employment prospects.
“The support I have received within UCC has been extremely valuable with helping me balance my academics and sporting career. The UCC Quercus scholarship has provided an excellent support system that has helped alleviate the pressures of balancing the two. In particular for me, things like having an academic mentor and flexible academic arrangements are essential to creating a schedule that works, especially come exam and hurling season.”
Regardless of whether you hope to balance your degree with hurling, music, or any other passion you can think of, Shane says UCC can help you. “The huge mix of clubs and societies on campus means there really is something for everyone, and you get to meet people from all walks of life. Being a UCC student is something that I take great pride in and has offered me a strong foundation professionally but also an opportunity to grow in my hurling career. I would strongly recommend the university in general, but definitely the BSc Accounting degree for anyone hoping to pursue a career in business.”
If you're interested in applying for the BSc Accounting degree, make sure you're aware of the key CAO deadlines:
- 1st May (17:00) — Closing date for late applications
- 5th May (12:00) — Online Change of Mind facility becomes available
- Before 15th May — Late Paper Applicants will be sent a Statement of Course Choices
- 1st July (17:00) — Change of Mind closes
For more information head to www.cubsucc.com.
