Congratulations: Mayo student earns prestigious scholarship

Orlaith Heaney, from County Mayo, and a former student at Mount Saint Michael Secondary School, has been awarded a prestigious €24,000 scholarship from Trane Technologies Thermoking. This scholarship, designated for students in Teen Turn, will provide Orlaith with €6,000 annually over the course of her four-year engineering degree at Atlantic Technological University (ATU) Galway City.

Orlaith, a former student at Mount Saint Michael Secondary School, has been engaged with Teen-Turn since she was in first year. She was introduced to Teen-Turn’s afterschool program by a friend. Orlaith had many successful projects during her years of attendance at the afterschool programs participating in Technovation, Scifest and BT Young scientist. Most recently she was honoured with a National Garda Community Safety Award. Orlaith progressed to attending Teen-Turn PLUS Saturday clubs, which deliver advanced learning in subjects that are not universally offered in all-girls’ secondary schools in Ireland, providing participants with foundational skills critical for engineering and technology courses at the university level. It was through Orlaith’s participation in Teen-Turn’s PLUS program that she discovered a strong passion for engineering, with a particular interest in robotics, automation and manufacturing engineering. Securing a ‘Teen-Turnship’, a 2-week summer work placement in Trane Technologies in Galway in the summer of 5th year further cemented Orlaith's desire to study Engineering.

Orlaith applied to the common engineering programme at ATU Galway City, which will allow her to experience various branches of engineering in her first year before deciding on her specialisation. 

Orlaith said, "Teen-Turn gave me opportunities I never would have had, from coding to building robots and learning from real engineers. These experiences showed me that engineering is where I want to be and I am excited to bring what I have learned into my studies at ATU. Teen-Turn’s programs helped me discover my love for robotics and automation and I am eager to explore all branches of engineering in my first year at ATU. I cannot wait to dive into a career where I can make a real impact."