ABOUT US
FOUNDER KATHY O'DWYER
Having spent five years training and working as a career and employment officer in London, Kathy O’Dwyer then returned to college to formally complete her training and accreditation in career guidance.
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On her return to Ireland, Kathy worked on a variety of projects that focused on women and youth unemployment during the 1980s. After years of successfully training and guiding many women and young people, she became an entrepreneur and founded Career Training Internships in 2010.
Since that time, Kathy and her dedicated team have been forming partnerships with local families and businesses, as well as managing trainee experiences for many years.
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We are part of the fabric of the Cork community. We know Cork businesses, and we match them with trainees from all over Europe, adding needed skills to businesses of all kinds. We provide a safe, unforgettable experience for trainees that includes a stay with a local family that we personally recruit and screen.
Our contributions to the community have a multiplier effect, as we bring new resources into Irish businesses and spending into the local economy.
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Our customer experience is summed up by our catchphrase: “Nurturing Emerging Talent.” We look at each individual from their unique goals and needs, providing a secure, immersive environment where they can gain work experience, learn English, and experience the best that Cork has to offer. Over the years we have innovated our processes to provide our trainees with a great experience abroad and our local partners with the extra help they need. We have focused on being lean and sustainable, while providing a boutique service to our customers and supporting the growing number of Cork companies that partner with us. The results have been worth the effort: student feedback has been consistently positive and enthusiastic, while businesses have told us how important trainees have been to their success.
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In December 2018, we achieved Business All-Star Accreditation from the All-Ireland Business Foundation. We are honoured to have been nominated for several prestigious awards, including most recently the Cork Business Association's Cork Business of the Year 2019: Best in Professional Business Services.
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2020 was a year of change for so many of us. We started a digital branch of the business, Virtual Career Training Internships, to continue to serve all our partners and trainees during this period.
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We welcomed back students to Ireland starting in 2021, and we are happy to be open for business once again.
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Kathy was recently featured in a podcast interview about the benefits of an internship, particularly the value that an intern can bring to a local business.
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We are also thrilled that Kathy has once again been recognised by Network Cork for its annual Businesswoman of the Year awards with prestigious nominations in two categories. ​
Sustainability
Doing our Part
Career Training Internships recognises its role in helping to address the challenges of climate change and sustainability. Through our actions we hope to create a cleaner, safer place to work, and to pass on these values to our partners and trainees. We aim to do this through the implementation of the highest standards of environmental practice resulting in an environmentally friendly organisation.
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It wishes to ensure that all those who engage with us develop a greater understanding of sustainability challenges and possess further information, skills and commitment to helping find and be living examples showcasing solutions for tomorrow’s generations.
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Career Training Internships aims to participate in projects that contribute to the well-being of every member of its immediate and extended community and to the health of the planet.
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Career Training Internships is committed to working to ensure that all employees are made aware of the importance of systematic environmental work and to encourage individual responsibility for sustainability actions in all aspects of their roles.
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Career Training Internships intends to continue to work collaboratively with stakeholders from participants, clients, industry, the local community and other stakeholders, to seek to broaden its impact and enhance its environmental work.
Social Inclusion
A Future for All
Career Training Internships is committed to a workplace and programme offerings that strive toward the ideal of social inclusion. This means we commit ourselves to providing opportunities to people of all cultural and personal backgrounds to participate in our programmes. We believe that this diversity makes us all better.
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It is in this spirit that we participate in numerous programmes that bring opportunities to those who have otherwise been excluded in society. Our programme offerings are intended to help provide a leg up, with the belief that by leaving one's comfort zone and gaining experience in a new atmosphere, it becomes easier to leave the past behind and find a new way forward. We have seen the welcoming spirit of the Irish people help the long-term unemployed to find a new passion or direction in their career.
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Career Training Internships also works collaboratively with stakeholders from participants, clients, industry, the local community and other stakeholders, to seek to broaden its impact and enhance its work of ensuring that everyone is treated fairly.