Louth student Thomas McCarragher is shaping his business future at DkIT

Currently completing his final year of the Level 8 Bachelor of Business degree at DkIT, 20-year-old Thomas McCarragher from Ballagan in Cooley has a strong passion for sport and business. 

Initially unsure if college was the right path for him, aspiring entrepreneur Thomas opted for a three-year degree.

“I was pretty sceptical about college at first — all I wanted to do was start my own business after school,” he said. “But I’m really glad I chose this course because it has given me the knowledge and confidence to succeed in business.”

A general Business degree appealed to Thomas as it allowed him to build a broad knowledge base while keeping his future options open, giving him the flexibility to pursue further study or move straight into business. He also appreciates the smaller classes which means he knows the lecturers really well and finds that “the whole class bounces off the group energy, and everyone mingles in together.” 

Thomas has particularly enjoyed exploring the psychological impact of marketing and different social media strategies, which has made marketing his favourite area of study. He has also developed a strong interest in business law, especially the Irish legal system.

Skills that Thomas feels he has strengthened since beginning his course include management and communication. He was chosen as project manager for a recent charity event for the Irish Wheelchair Association, where his skills were put to the test. The “Run and Roll”, followed by a quiz were a huge success raising over €3000. 

Although being an entrepreneur is an aspiration Thomas has had for many years, the Entrepreneurship module in the first year of his course helped him to envision how some of these ideas might develop. 

He is currently focusing on developing one of his ideas, an AI app, which acts as an agent to manage social media content and posting. The app is being designed to analyse a company’s products or services and provide suggested social media content and optimum posting times. “It’s still in development, but I’m hopeful it would help someone starting out or that doesn’t have a big budget to hire an agency,” according to Thomas. 

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As a self-taught coder, Thomas has enjoyed the challenge, “I’m learning to code as I go, so if a new issue comes up it takes a bit longer to solve,” he explains. “But it’s really satisfying when I figure it out.”

Thomas is hoping to use the app to trial his own entrepreneurial ideas and then engage with some other companies to test a prototype.

For any other aspiring entrepreneurs, or anyone considering a Business degree, Thomas advises:

“Be open to all possibilities. When you leave school, you think you know everything, but once you get to college you realise there’s so much more to learn. I was closed off to the idea at first, but meeting new people helped me grow a lot. Whether you want to start your own business or work in one, it’s a great course.”