Dylan Traynor – BSc (Hons) in Quantity Surveying

Name: Dylan Traynor

School: Rosses Community School

Tell us a little bit about yourself and what led you to choose your course 

I have always had an interest in the construction industry (my father was a Civil Engineer) and I heard a lot of good things about ATU Sligo and decided on Quantity Surveying as it seems like an interesting course, offering a good career path and the chance to work overseas as I have always been interested in travel.

Why did you choose ATU Sligo? 

Sligo is a lovely town; I am in a different county away from Donegal but still close enough to get home for a visit to see my family and friends when I want to. ATU Sligo becoming a university also is very appealing for new students this year and the course I wanted also seemed to be more interesting here than that on offer at other colleges.

What advice would you give someone thinking about choosing ATU Sligo? 

This is a great college in a great town, I have found it to be a friendly place and very well run with great facilities. With many brilliant courses to pick from and lots to do about both the Campus and the Town, it’s the ideal location to further your education.

Do you like Sligo as a student town? e.g. things to do, food, nightlife, clubs and societies, accommodation etc. 

Sligo has so much to offer students as there are lots of clubs and pubs for nightlife. During the week the town is packed, there are nice restaurants all over the town that make the best food. I live on campus at the Grove, however, there is lots of accommodation in Sligo for students if you go looking. When it comes to clubs and societies there’s probably one for anyone that comes – there’s running, football, rugby, gaming and surfing etc. 

What specifically about your course do you particularly enjoy? 

There are many things about my course I like. I enjoy the ICT and learning about the construction process in general and how we apply the course to the real world.

What would you say to a student thinking about studying your course? 

If you don’t mind a wee bit of arithmetic and measurement then it will suit you, it’s a tough course but I believe that if you keep up with the coursework it’s fine. There’s a lot of continuous assessment which I find suits me rather than just tests.

Tell us about your sporting career/success so far? 

I am now 20 years old and have been racing my bike since youth level. As a youth, I won several dals at both Provincial and National Championships and won several races including the Errigal International Youth Tour which I won overall and won the Queen’s Stage.

As a first-year Junior (transition year at school) I was invited out to New Zealand where I trained and raced with Rotorua Racing for 5 months. As it was pre-season for me and they were in the middle of theirs it was a tough but fantastic experience. During my stay there I raced in the (Cat 2) Dynamo series and took part in the prestigious International Hub Tour a 3 day, four-stage race where I won the first stage and then went on to defend and win the King of the Mountains category overall (polka-dot jersey).

As both youth and Junior I have represented my province of Ulster on numerous occasions and been on the Youth National Selection Squad. In 2019, as a rider for the Nicolas Roche Performance Team (NRPT), I raced in UCI Nations Cup events throughout Europe and competed in the International Junior Tour de DMZ in South Korea. In the National Road Race Championships that year I was away in the break for most of the race before being pulled back in and finishing in 11th place but winning team Gold.

In November 2020 I went to Spain and was based in Port de Pollenca where I spent the winter training before returning to Ireland for the start of the 2021 Racing Season which was unfortunately heavily disrupted due to Covid.

What is the best thing about sports and sports facilities at ATU Sligo? 

There is a fantastic support system in place here with plenty of teams to play for in ATU. Facilities are great with several pitches and running tracks and then there’s the ATU gym which is a great facility for any student living and training in Sligo.

How has the sports scholarship benefited you? What are its advantages of it? 

Having free access to the gym is very beneficial as my finances as a student are limited, the financial support is a huge benefit as my sport is very costly so the assistance offered through the Scholarship is helping me greatly.

Find out more about AU945 Bachelor of Science (Honours) in Quantity Surveying

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