All graduates currently struggling to gain employment should come along to a unique graduate support event in NUI Galway on Thursday, 13 May, from 10am to 4pm in IT 125 in the Information Technology Building. This free event, organised by the Career Development Centre and the Alumni Office, is targeted at NUI Galway graduates, but all are welcome to attend. Information on emerging employment areas, innovative job search strategies and tips on how to stay motivated, are just some of the topics that will be covered by a panel of experts. Attendees are also encouraged to bring along their CVs for individual review with Career Development Centre staff and alumni. The Career Development Centre have this year partnered with the NUI Galway Alumni Office to provide a unique opportunity for attendees to get one-to-one advice on their interview technique from past graduates who have extensive interviewing experience. A limited number of NUI Galway Graduates will also be given the opportunity to avail of the support of a Graduate Guide from experienced members of the Alumni Association who will provide follow up coaching and support. There will also be a networking lunch with a variety of professional bodies including IBEC/Gradlink, Engineers Ireland and the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants, all of whom have continuous professional development options and initiatives to support unemployed members. "We look forward to continuing our support to alumni through this unique event and strongly encourage those who are looking for new ways to market themselves to come along and get their career back on track" said John Hannon, Head of the Career Development Centre, NUI Galway. Details of the full programme are available on www.nuigalway.ie/careers. For further details contact the NUI Galway Career Development Centre on 091 493589 or email josephine.walsh@nuigalway.ie. -Ends-

- Launch of Colman Doyle Photography Exhibition at NUI Galway - The James Hardiman Library is delighted to announce that it will host an exhibition of the photographs of Irish photographer Colman Doyle. The exhibition will be launched by John Quinn, writer and former broadcaster with RTÉ, on Wednesday, 5 May, 2010 at 5.30pm in the James Hardiman Library, NUI Galway. The exhibition of over 80 photographs is on loan from the National Library of Ireland, where Colman Doyle's large photographic collection is to be found. The collection of photographs includes portraits of politicians such as Charles J. Haughey, Jack Lynch and Eamon de Valera, and visiting dignitaries and heads of state including John F. Kennedy and Princess Grace of Monaco. Colman Doyle is widely acknowledged as one of the most important Irish photographers of the twentieth century. He was probably Ireland's first documentary style photographer, noted for his portraits of political leaders and literary figures, as well as for his photographs of ordinary people throughout the country. As a sports photographer, he acquired a huge reputation for his action shots of GAA matches and horse races. John Quinn, who will launch the exhibition, is a well-known broadcaster who worked in RTÉ for 25 years and won various prestigious awards throughout that time. He collaborated with Colman Doyle on the book All Changed: Fifty Years of Photographing Ireland, in which they individually chronicled life in Ireland over 50 years in words and images respectively. The photographs on exhibition will also include fascinating vignettes of Irish life from the 1950s to the 1990s, covering topics such as changes in daily life in Ireland and on the Blasket Islands. Doyle also recorded daily life in Northern Ireland during the 1970s and 1980s, a period during which he photographed behind-the-scenes images of political meetings and street violence. An added feature of the exhibition will be the film Colman Doyle Ábhar Machnaimh, first broadcast on TG4 in 2006. The film follows the photographer as he returns to capture images in West Kerry, reconnecting with his earliest work as a press photographer, and looks back at the astonishing collection of photographs taken by Colman Doyle over the decades. John Cox, NUI Galway Librarian, welcomed the exhibition: "This is a wonderful exhibition, with fascinating insights into Ireland's last five decades. We are extremely grateful for the opportunity afforded by the National Library of Ireland to exhibit these photographs in Galway". Cox added: "The photographs in the exhibition cover 50 years of Irish life and we have many resources in the Library that connect to the era from a political, social, economic and historical point of view. These are all realms touched on in this comprehensive photographic exhibition". Following the launch the exhibition will run until Friday, 25 June on the ground floor of the James Hardiman Library and admission is free. Library opening hours are available to view at www.library.nuigalway.ie. -Ends-

The Adult and Continuing Education Office at NUI Galway will host an information evening in the Orbsen Building on Thursday, 6 May, from 6.30-8.30pm. Over 40 courses will be showcased at this public event which provides an opportunity for prospective students to meet with the coordinators of the various courses on offer. NUI Galway's Adult and Continuing Education part-time programmes are available from foundation level studies through to Masters level. The courses can be either classroom-based or delivered through distance learning for those unable to attend the campus on a weekly basis. This year, a new part-time BA programme will be launched at the Open Evening,which will commence in September 2010. The BA in Early Childhood Studies and Practice is delivered via distance learning and aims to meet the needs of practitioners in the childcare sector who wish to pursue further education and training in a flexible manner. The new cycle of the Bachelor of Arts will be of interest to students wishing to pursue subjects in English, Spanish, Sociological and Political Studies. Both programmes are available over four years on a part-time basis. Nuala McGuinn, NUI Galway Adult Education Development Officer, explains: "Students are awarded a Diploma in Arts after two years and a full Bachelor of Arts on completion of the full four-year cycle". For prospective students seeking career advancement in a high-tech industry such as medical devices and pharmaceuticals, a BSc or a Diploma in Science and Technology Studies commences in August 2010. This programme is delivered on a part-time basis using blended learning. Course coordinator Dr Niamh Nolan, said: "For students wishing to retrain or update their skills in response to Ireland's Smart Economy objectives, a number of one-year diplomas also are available in Medical Device Science and Environmental Sustainability. With modules available on a standalone basis, students may select individual or groups of modules at their own pace and accumulate credits over a number of years to attain a diploma or degree award providing ultimate flexibility for the learner". For students who wish to pursue a shorter term award, diplomas are available in Geology, Gemmology, Social Gerontology, Irish Music Studies and in a number of European Languages. All diplomas are two-years in duration with classes taking place on campus one evening per week. Modular learning options are also available on a range of courses including the MSc Software Engineering and Database Technologies, MSc Technology Management, BA Training and Education. This option allows students to take isolated modules to meet their own continuing professional development and upskilling requirements. Students interested in this route are advised to contact programme coordinators for advice on modules and options available to them. Applications for all programmes are accepted from April. For further details on the information evening or on any of the Adult and Continuing Education programmes contact 091-492062, 091-495845 or adulteducation@nuigalway.ie. Full details on all courses are available at www.nuigalway.ie/adulteducation -Ends-

NUI Galway student Danny MacEachmharcaigh from Gortahork, Co. Donegal has scooped an oxygen.ie National Student Media Award. The award was for Television production through Irish: Léiriúcháin Teilifíse i nGaeilge - Faisnéis & Drámaíocht. Danny, a student of Acadamh na hOllscolaíochta Gaeilge, NUI Galway, was presented the award for the production, "Beans". The 10th Anniversary Oxygen.ie National Student Media Awards took place in the Mansion House in Dublin. It was attended by over 600 students from across the country and a host of national media personalities, including MCs for the event, Kathryn Thomas and Dáithí Ó Sé, broadcaster George Hook, Paul Williams of The News of the World, Samantha Libreri of RTÉ and 2Fm's DJ Ruth Scott. Judges for the awards included highly respected professionals within the media industry. Micheál Ó Meallaigh, Senior Commissioning Editor TG4, was the judge of the category; Léiriúcháin Teilifíse i nGaeilge - Faisnéis & Drámaíocht. Winner Danny MacEachmharcaigh, said; "It was a bit of a shock getting the award, a bit unexpected, but it was fantastic and a great night". Aodh Ó Coileáin, lecturer in communications at Acadamh na hOllscolaíochta Gaeilge, said, "For a small organisation like the Acadamh, it is a great honour to receive nine nominations and to win one award at the event. It is great to have Irish language radio, television and print journalism from among the entries from all major colleges on this Island". Judge Eoin McVey, Managing Editor of The Irish Times, said: "The Smedias has very high standards and competition is very tight. Without a doubt, being involved in college based media is a tremendous training ground, and The Smedias are particularly useful for prospective employers in singling out the journalistic talent that is produced by Ireland's universities. We attach great importance to the Awards and value our annual involvement hugely". The Oxygen.ie National Student Media Awards recognise the brightest up and coming media talent in the country. They are aimed at full time third level students involved in any type of media work - print, online, broadcasting or creative arts. The awards are judged and presented by high profile media leaders and sponsored by national newspapers, broadcasters and media websites. There are 33 individual categories to be assessed each year, offering students a competitive outlet in which to showcase their talent before entering the media industry. -Ends-

The Irish Centre for Social Gerontology (ICSG) at NUI Galway and COPE Galway Senior Support Services are co-hosting a participatory conference on Life Enhancement for Older People across the areas of participation and civic engagement, empowerment and advocacy. The event will take place on Tuesday, 4 May, from 10.30-3.30pm in the Galway Bay Hotel. The conference is one of the first of this type in Ireland, aimed specifically at older people. It will have a special focus on how research can involve older people and how it can be used to benefit them and their community. The event will provide older people with the opportunity to give their opinions and discuss participation in society, empowerment and advocacy. The purpose of the conference is to present existing research on life enhancement for older people in an accessible format. It will also demonstrate how research knowledge can enhance the voice of older people and to support their participation in advocacy and lobbying activities. Eithne Carey, a member of the ICSG Consultative Committee and Conference Chair, said: "Older people are frequently involved in research and, as an older person, I am interested in finding out how research is used for the benefit of older people. I am also keen to know how we can use research ourselves as a tool in any advocacy situation which might arise. I feel that this conference will give us an insight into these matters". Speaking about the conference, Áine Ní Léime, Research and Civic Engagement Co-ordinator with the ICSG, commented: "Research completed on older people is all too often seen as detached from real life or seen as only for those who work in universities. What we want to do is demonstrate the importance of research for older people and how they can be active in the research process, and how they can use research to lobby for their own rights and entitlements. This conference is about more than just being presented with information. It is about asking older people what they think is important and how they think they should be involved in their communities, in research and in advocating for their own needs". Speakers for the conference will include Professor Eamon O'Shea and Dr Cathy Bailey from the Irish Centre for Social Gerontology at NUI Galway, Dr Una Lynch, Changing Ageing Partnership, Queen's University Belfast and Anne Watson, Newtownabbey Senior Citizen's Forum. For further information about the conference contact COPE Galway at 091-778750 or fundraising@copegalway.ie. -Ends-