Ciaran McFadden PhD student

I graduated with a Master’s degree in Business Management from the School of Business in 2012 and have continued on to a PhD. Having graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Biomedical Science I decided to take a conversion Master’s to broaden my horizons and add to my career prospects. During my time as a Master’s student I quickly realised that I loved the area and wanted to continue in it as a PhD student. My PhD research area arose as a direct result of my experience with the materials and case-studies in the Master’s programme. I was awarded the John and Pat Hume Research Scholarship before I started my research and the Irish Research Council Scholarship at the end of my first year. My supervisor and the staff in the School of Business and the Graduate Studies Office were instrumental in my attaining funding, offering helpful advice and constructive criticism every step of the way.
My PhD research looks at the careers and workplace experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) workers. During my undergraduate I served as Co-President of the campus LGBT society, and saw first-hand the experiences, both negative and positive, that LGBT people may go through during their employment. Working from a human resources context, I hope to form recommendations for policy makers within organizations that will help both LGBT workers and the organization themselves, leading to an efficient and equitable workplace for everyone.
From starting as a first year undergraduate student in Maynooth in 2006, I can honestly say I still love it. The lecturers are all approachable, there is a club or society for every interest and the campus has a friendly, small-town atmosphere that belies its fantastic international reputation for research and teaching.