Business (Accounting) students win national Ernst & Young Challenge

Five Business students in GMIT have scooped first prize in the national Ernst & Young (EY) Head-to-Head Challenge which, for the first time, was open to all Institutes of Technology in the country.

The five students - Robyn Conboy, Galway city, Kaoibha Merrick, Ennis, Co Clare, Paul Maloney, Longford, Yuri Schmidt, Loughrea and Kassandra Siva Sivajothi, Malaysia and Galway, won a €100 voucher each, and are fast-tracked to interviews for the EY Summer Internship paid programme this July (2015).

The Bachelor of Business (Hons) in Accounting students had to analyse a case study, and then present and defend their recommended business solutions in front of EY partners.

Carmel Brennan, Head of Dept of Accounting, GMIT, says it is a great achievement to win this overall prize, given that there was strong competition from all colleges nationwide.

“We are very proud of our winning team and their lecturer mentors – Kevin McDonagh and Shane Moran.  The judges commended the students on their analytical ability and communication skills, both transferable skills which we place a lot of emphasis on in GMIT.”