Gradlife Podcast

This is an episode with Catherine Deane, Partner and Chair at McCann FitzGerald. In this episode Catherine talks about her experience starting off in the aviation industry with McCann and working her way up to partner of aircraft financing and leasing. This sector has had lots of growth over the past few years and makes a riveting podcast for anyone who is interested in getting into the legal or the commercial side of leasing.

In the debut episode of our new Game Changers podcast, Finn Hatherell interviews one of Irelands most respected angel investors - Brian Caulfield. In this episode Brian discusses the dot com crash of the naughties, the future of big tech and his thoughts on AI. 

This week on GradLife, Ruby speaks to Matthew Nuding, a Junior Policy Analyst in the Digital Economy division of the OECD. They chat about his time in Trinity, which included a year spent as President of the Phil. Matthew speaks candidly about his experience as a Grad upon leaving Trinity, before he began in the OECD through the Young Associates Programme. A really worthwhile listen for anyone interested in the intersection between law and politics.

Only fitting that we would have GradLife founder Mark Maxwell as the first Guest on Outlier. Mark has a story that some would struggle to squeeze in in 60 years, let alone 30! In this episode we hear about some risqué job application techniques Mark adopted to get his ideal role, how a trip to peaceful New Zealand almost proved fatal and how doing what you think is expected of you isn’t always what is actually what’s right for you, and much more. Mark’s honesty, energy and passion for life make him a force to be reckoned with, it was brilliant to have him tell his story on the Podcast.

Mr. Justice Peter Kelly has been described as a “fearless, forthright and formidable legal force”. After establishing himself as a remarkable barrister, representing several high-profile clients, he was appointed a judge of the High Court. During his career he gained much recognition for his admirable handling of cases concerning those most vulnerable in our society. He played a pivotal role during the aftermath of the financial crisis, condemning banks, property developers and businesspeople. Mr Justice Kelly spent time in the High Court, the commercial court, and the court of appeal before returning to the HC on becoming president. He retired in 2020, after 24 years’ service on the bench.

This week Danny chats to Paddy Ryder, Co-Founder of Covid Interns and MSc Finance & Accounting student at Imperial College London. The guys talk about starting a social enterprise in the midst of covid. the benefits of societal involvements at college, moving to London and breaking into the world of Investment Banking. They also delve into how the opportunity cost of trying new things has never been lower, which in part led to Paddy setting up Covid Interns, enabling him partner students/graduates with organisations seeking assistance during the pandemic.

In this episode, Ruby speaks to Jonathon Boylan, auditor of the 87th session of the Trinity Law Society. They discuss his time in Trinity, his involvement with Law Soc, and the challenges he’s faced this year as auditor of a society in the zoom era. We also learn how an interview with Niall Horan brought him significant social media attention. A great insight into what is involved in running one of Trinity's busiest societies.

In the second episode of the Law podcast, Ruby speaks to John Neeson, a senior associate in the corporate group of McCann FitzGerald. They discuss his route to corporate law, which included a stint in a criminal law firm and a year in Australia, as well as his favourite aspects of the job. Well worth a listen if you haven’t quite made up your mind about the corporate law path.

In our first Gradlife Law podcast, we speak to Karyn Harty, who is a litigation partner at McCann FitzGerald. This is a really remarkable chat on life and career, if if Law/Litigation don't fit within your career plans!

This week on the podcast, Kate chats to Shreya Pattar about her work as a freelance content creator, her chat with the former CEO of LinkedIn, how she manages her following of 85k+ followers on LinkedIn and 40k+ followers on Instagram, how she balances client work with college work and much more. Shreya is nailing her work in so many ways and has lots of advice to share - enjoy this one! 

In this episode, Kate speaks to Hannah Lynch about her work in the blockchain space and how she sees blockchain shaping the world around us. Hannah also describes her college experience including her involvement in the Matheson hackathon, the Trinity Dragon's Den competition, Techstars' Start-up weekend and more. A really insightful glimpse into the worlds of blockchain and startups!

This week on Gradlife, Danny talks to Tom Lynch, a pricing analyst for Avolon, one of the world's top aircraft lessors. Tom gives us an insight into his role as a pricing analyst in Avolon's Hong Kong office and also details his involvement in the 'Project I' study around the development of Ireland entrepreneurial ecosystem.  A quick but fascinating chat with one of Ireland's top young prospects in aviation.

Charlie Butler talks about his journey to being Founder of Bounce Insights, including the practical steps, tough decisions, and sacrifices he needed to make along the way. Great listen!

Kate Fullen (Venture Capitalist) and Danny Hogan (Entrepreneur) are Gradlife's two newest hosts on the business podcast. Here they tell their stories and interview each other so that you can get to know the two legends behind the mic in our latest episodes!

Great to have Conor Leen, Founder and CEO of BOOMING Social Enterprise Stampify, returns to Gradlife to drop some more wisdom, inspiration, and and update on his incredible success with Stampify to date.

This week on the Gradlife podcast Kate spoke to the one and only, Orla Comeford. They discuss the Orla's journey from the leaving cert to the Rio games, studying at NCAD, the peaks and troughs of following your passions and much more.

Tanner O'Connell talks about his journey through KPMG and into Venture Capital. The benefits of working at a small fund, the roles and all they entail, and the mental journey he has been on to getting there - seriously, a ton to learn from this man and so happy to finally get him on!

This week on Gradlife, Kate spoke to Gabriel Ogundipe. Gabby is a Trinity MSISS graduate who is currently working at fintech, Checkout.com. During his time as Trinity, Gabriel co-founded a start-up, Luminary Hub, and secured a place in the Trinity Launchbox programme, placed in the world finals of a case competition in New York, and was the vice-president of the Irish Student Consulting Group. Gabby also secured the George Moore scholarships to complete a masters in the US upon finishing college. We talk motivations, the importance of extra-curriculars in college, job applications, and more.

Emily and Suzanne, from KPMG's Grad Recruitment team, walk us through everything you need to know about how to get a job in one of Ireland's most prestigious graduate programs!

Rachel Browne tells us about her journey to becoming a designer with Vivienne Westwood while at the same time achieving som real success as an actress too!