Health & Safety
Choosing a career involves more than just finding out
what is open to you. Knowledge about yourself is vital to
the process. It is valuable to start by looking at your
strengths, weaknesses, interests, abilities and skills in
order to relate career options to you. The NUI Galway
Career Development Centre has resources to help you in
your self-assessment and career planning including
psychometric tests and reference books/files. Drop in to
browse through the careers library or visit our website at:
www.nuigalway.ie/careers.
Your skills and the employment market
You will have acquired the skills and techniques for the
application of Health & Safety practice to professional
standards with specific knowledge in areas which include:
 Ergonomics (assessing people in their physical
environment),
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Irish and European legal systems and their
implications for health and safety issues,
 Occupational Health & Hygiene,
 Safety & Risk Management,
 Safety Statements & Audits,
 Quality,
 Production & Operations,
 Data Analysis.
Other skills you will have gained during your studies are:
 Presentation skills.
 Communication skills.
 Excellent understanding of business organisation, the
workplace environment and interpersonal relations.
 Computer skills
Your work placement will also give you the practical
introduction to the workplace that employers value, and
enhance your time management, project management,
communication and team-working skills.
Note that: to work on a site in Ireland, it is necessary to
hold a ‘Safepass’. This qualification is obtained through a
one-day course run by FÁS
(http://jobbank.fas.ie/safepass/ )
Possible Career Opportunities
Occupational
Health Officer
Health & Safety
Consultant
Regulatory
Affairs
Ergonomist
Safety Officer
Quality Officer
Health & Safety
Adviser
Researcher
Health & Safety
Officer
Safety Inspector
Occupational
Hygienist
Environmental
Health Officer
Note: Further qualifications may be needed for certain positions. This
list is a sample representation of positions available.
All employers must conform to Health & Safety
legislation meaning that professionals are required in
industries such as:
Manufacturing
Agriculture
Mining
Wholesale and Retail
Civil Service
Medical Sector
Production
Construction
Consultancies
Local authorities
Legal firms
Public Services
Sample Job Advertisements
Some jobs advertised recently that may suit students /
graduates (these jobs are not currently available and are
shown here for illustration purposes only).
H&S/Access Specialist, KTL. This position would be
most suitable for a Construction/ Safety graduate. The
ideal person would have some knowledge of
Construction/ Plant & H&S on sites. [13]
Safety Officer, MMD Construction, Cork. Promoting a
positive health and safety behavioural based culture
within the organisation, and assisting in the development
of safer and healthier ways of working in conjunction
with the companies OHSAS 18001, ISO 9001 and Safe T
Cert procedures. Conducting training sessions for
management, supervisors and workers on health and
safety practices and legislation. [13]
Graduate Health & Safety Officer, John Paul
Construction. Assist with the management of EHS
Management System on site to comply with legislation
and company procedures. Required: Honours degree in
Health and Safety. [13]
…
Further study opportunities
For certain career choices, employers may look for
candidates with further qualifications and training.
Some of the courses chosen by graduates in the past at
NUI Galway (www.nuigalway.ie/courses) were:
 Master of Arts (Writing)
 Higher Diploma in Business Studies
 Postgraduate Diploma in Health Promotion
 MSc Occupational Health & Ergonomics
 M Appl Sc
 Masters of Applied Science (Enterprise Systems)
 PhD Science
Other courses taken by graduates were:
 Masters in Environmental Resource Mgmt, UCD
 MSc Business and Entrepreneurship, DIT
 Masters in Environmental Health and Safety, DIT
 Masters Environmental Health & Safety, DCU
 MSc Fire Safety Engineering, University of Ulster
www.nuigalway.ie/conversion covers conversion courses
at NUI Galway and also links to full time, online and part
time courses.
The website www.postgradireland.com also contains
useful information on postgraduate courses in Ireland,
www.prospects.ac.uk is an excellent site for researching
opportunities in the UK and http://europa.eu.int/ploteus
covers the EU.
What past graduates have done
It is always interesting to know what fellow graduates
have done after obtaining their degree at NUI, Galway.
These have been taken from NUI Galway Graduate
Destination Survey.
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Health & Safety Officer (unpaid internship), Galway
Fire Station
Health and Safety, Coffey Construction, Galway
Health and Safety, Baam Construction
Health and Safety Consultant, Priority Risk, London
Health and Safety, G&F, Galway
EHS Co-op, Astellas Ireland, Kerry
Consultancy Health and Safety, Cypol, London
Health & Safety Officer, Coogan Plant Hire
Health and Safety Manager, Merp, Kilrush
Safety, Health & Enviromental Advisor, Costain Ltd
Assistant Health and Safety Officer, Cordil
Construction Ltd, Galway
Environmental Health and Safety Officer, Baxter
Healthcare, Castlebar
Health and Safety Consultant, Employment & Safety
Associates, Dublin
Occupational Hygienist, GlaxoSmithKline, Cork
Quality Administrator, Abbott Ireland Vascular
Division
Resources in the Careers Information Room
Reference material in the Information Room includes:
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Job sector files D, T, V
Destinations of Science Graduates
Careers with a Science Degree
Opportunities in the Pharmachem Sector
Gradireland (annual directory)
We also have a range of titles to reference on taking
psychometric tests, going for interview, writing a CV or
personal statement… and much more.
Drop into our information room and we will be happy to
assist you – there’s no need to book an appointment to
browse through our resources.
Be sure and pick up our free booklets ‘Your CV’ and
‘Interview Skills’.
Useful websites
We have found that the following websites contain
relevant and interesting information on opportunities with
a degree in Health & Safety.
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www.nuigalway.ie/careers
www.gradireland.com
www.hsa.ie Health & Safety Authority
www.niso.ie/ National Irish Safety Organisation
Europe
 www.prospects.ac.uk
 www.iosh.co.uk Institute of Occupational Safety &
Health
 http://ie.osha.europa.eu/
 www.hse.gov.uk Health & Safety Executive
 www.ehcareers.org
 www.bohs.org British Occupational Hygiene Society
Abroad
 www.ascc.gov.au/ Australian Safety and
Compensation Council – see training pages.
 http://nsca.org.au/training/public-training/
 http://www.ccohs.ca/ccohs/careers/
 www.cieh.org Chart. Inst. Environmental Health
 www.ehscareers.com US jobs database
There are many social media sites and groups helping
people who are looking for work. Search LinkedIn,
Twitter, Facebook to find people, companies and
discussion groups to follow. Or use query sites such as
www.twitjobsearch.com/, www.google.ie/alerts to search
for latest news items. See our FAQ at
www.nuigalway.ie/careers/students/faq/socialmedia.html