From DCU Business School to Digital Marketing in Berlin
Donal Peoples studied International Marketing & Languages in DCU Business School. Here he tells us how his career took off from there:
I left DCU in 2006 after finishing my Bachelors degree in International Marketing and Languages. I was really excited to put the things I’d learned at University to good use, starting with my language skills, so I decided to move to Berlin in Germany. I never would have imagined at that time, that I’d still be living in Germany today! I really loved my time at DCU – it gave me a great foundation, most especially for my language skills, and I particularly enjoyed the language classes every week.
I originally chose DCU Business School as my brother had also attended DCU and he recommended it to me as a great University. I was really excited about the prospect of studying marketing and getting a taste of subjects such as market research and economics. The University also had a great reputation for language courses which were really well taught.
When I graduated, the Irish job market was booming and there were lots of different offers on the table to go into some very large businesses in Dublin. However I had spent a year in Cologne on Erasmus and I figured I’d give living abroad another go. It was a spur of the moment decision to move to Berlin, but I always felt there would be offers for me to come back to at any point in the future. That dynamic changed a bit with the onset of the recession in 2008/2009, so the move to Germany became somewhat permanent!
It was relatively simple to get started in Berlin at that time and I began an internship with a company involved in affiliate marketing and somehow slipped into the world of E-Commerce, something which was only slightly dealt with on the curriculum during my studies at DCU, but something which was really cool to be involved in. Now, years later I’ve spent the most of 10 years in Online marketing and have really found my feet. I know that my degree at DCU set me up to get onto the right career path.
I’m now working in the education sector, looking after the Organic Growth team at www.sofatutor.com a start-up making educational videos for kids attending primary and secondary school here in Germany! It’s a good way to combine my knowledge of online marketing whilst at the same time trying to improve the level of education in the country using new digital media.
I can always look back fondly at my time at DCU and know that it was a great experience and helped me learn some great skills which I’ve put into use in my career! The courses and degrees there are great and give you a great start in life! I have to thank DCU a lot for starting me off on a great path!