“IT JUST FELT like the right time.”

Timing is everything, especially with the hectic lives we all lead. Sometimes we can put what we really want to do on the long finger for a while.

For Darragh Crowley, advancing his career was a top priority.

“An MBA was something that I had been considering for several years as an option to broaden my strategic skill set but just simply hadn’t got round to and now felt like the right time,” he said.

After becoming set on an MBA, Darragh began looking for a programme that suited his busy life. With a full-time job and three kids under six, balancing his commitments was going to be key. 

“I wanted to build on my previous financial market experience, and I wanted to join an MBA programme that would prepare me for general management roles,” he said. 

“Something really important to me was that the programme had some flexibility,” Darragh added.

The answer to Darragh’s search for his dream MBA programme was found in the UCD Smurfit School. He chose to study the two-year part-time Executive MBA, which, due to its flexible delivery, allowed him to continue working and to prioritise time with his young family. 

The UCD Smurfit School MBA is built for ambitious professionals who want to build on their careers to date, or seek a change of scenery and enhance their options in the world of work. All those who enrol in the programme enjoy an outstanding and challenging academic curriculum delivered by world-renowned faculty within an intimate classroom setting.

Accredited for more than 20 years, UCD Smurfit School is one of an elite group of schools worldwide to hold the ‘triple crown’ of accreditation from three centres of business and academic excellence, EQUIS (Europe), AACSB (US) and AMBA (UK). 

For Darragh, he saw UCD Smurfit School as the perfect environment to follow his ambitions. Darragh’s career to date includes stints with some of Ireland’s most prominent businesses. Having spent time at AIB, Bord Gais and the Kerry Group, he now works for Bank of Ireland in an investor relations role. Since the course commenced in August, Darragh has enjoyed the atmosphere created by his fellow students due to the diversity of their backgrounds.

A key highlight for me so far has been the class itself. I knew coming into the MBA that peer-to-peer learning was going to be a big part of the UCD Smurfit School MBA experience. It’s surpassing expectations so far. We’ve got people from many different backgrounds, and both public and private sectors in the class. This includes people from the Defence Forces, engineers, accountants, doctors and media,” he said.

Darragh attends on-campus sessions two days a month, with much of the learning taking place online. Getting to know the class and hearing their insights from their careers is commonplace in the course, with many in the programme bringing unique perspectives to the room.

The MBA is open to ambitious professionals who want to advance/change their careers.

“All viewpoints are welcome, and I would say that although it’s very informal, there are a lot of smart people in the room. It’s absolutely nurturing at a very respectful level, and everyone is there to listen. It’s just a really collegial atmosphere and an excellent learning environment,” says Darragh.

During his application, Darragh came across The Journal MBA Scholarship, which offers a full scholarship covering 100% of tuition fees for either the Full-Time MBA or the Part-Time Executive MBA. Applying for it was a “very easy and smooth” process, with the MBA admissions team at UCD Smurfit School extremely helpful.

I knew I wanted to go to Smurfit and I was looking at the scholarship options and saw that The Journal scholarship was available and I was lucky enough to be awarded it. Essentially, it made the difference between me doing the MBA and not doing it,” said Darragh.

In the course itself, subjects such as finance, strategy, marketing, HR and many more, are all covered. Darragh named LEAP (Leadership, Employability and Advancement Programme), which focuses on leadership development, as a particular highlight unique to the UCD Smurfit School MBA programme.

The course sees a lot of collaboration with classmates, with group projects a key part of the academic assessment. Study groups change each semester, giving students a chance to get to know each other better and ensuring collective learning.

For Darragh, the flexible structure of the course has helped him balance working, studying and most importantly, spending time with his wife and kids. By utilising his time midweek in the evening, Darragh believes he’s got the balance just right. 

“What I first of all do is to try and carve out time for my family,” says Darragh. “I try and concentrate study into the weekday evenings because I’m away one Friday and Saturday a month at Smurfit, and want to try and leave the other weekends, particularly the daytime Saturday and Sunday, for family.”

He credits his family for being “really supportive” of his studies. Darragh advises anyone looking to study the MBA programme to get on the same page with their family to ensure the right balance is struck.

It’s important to get that structure down. You need to go into an MBA with your eyes wide open for your family, knowing before you start that there is probably a bit of a pull on time. Now, it’s only for two years, and two years goes pretty quickly. But it helps if everybody at home is on board,” he said.

For anyone looking to follow Darragh and take their career to the next level, UCD Smurfit School MBA programmes are a surefire way of doing that. 

If you wish to learn more about the masters programmes offered, the UCD Smurfit School’s Open Evening takes place on 13 February. The event will showcase the wide range of Full-Time Masters as well as MBA Programmes, with a dedicated MBA Session 7pm-8.30pm. The event will also feature the Part-Time MSc in Management Online and Part-Time MSc in Project Management Online. You can pre-register for the Open Evening here.

The dedicated MBA session on 13 February from 7pm-8.30pm will include an overview of the Smurfit MBA programmes, a taste lecture on the theme of Global & Corporate Strategy, delivered by MBA Academic Director Assoc Professor Ciaran Heavey, followed by an MBA student and alumni panel discussion covering travel and international exposure and experiences. Those in attendance will also have the opportunity to meet with the MBA Programme and Admissions Teams.

Applications for the 2024 The Journal MBA Scholarship at UCD Smurfit School are now open, and more information can be found here. The deadline for applications is April 30. Classes will commence in August 2024.