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From early on, Jennifer knew that she was interested in an insurance career. Her co-op placement with Ark Life confirmed this decision and after college, she joined Marsh Captive Solutions, where she still works today.

It provided me with invaluable opportunity in terms of personal and professional growth. Not only did I hone a number of skills from a problem-solving point of view, but the exposure to working with and learning from talented professionals in the industry, really gave me confidence when I started my career after graduating.

Tell us a bit about yourself, what course did you study in UL, what has your career looked like to date?

I studied insurance and European studies from 1996 to 2000.  From day one, I always had an interest in Risk Management and Captive Insurance. Michael McMahon, my RM lecturer at the time, spoke about Captives a lot and I just knew it was where I wanted my career to be.  I started with Marsh Captive Solutions in Dublin as an Insurance Officer after graduating.  Within time I progressed to Insurance and Business Development Manager.  In 2016, I started working remotely for our Guernsey operation, where I am now part of the Senior Management Team as Head of Insurance.

Tell us a bit about your co-op placement, what organisation did you work with and what year it took place?

Back then, there were two co-op placements. One in second year and one in 3rd year.  My first one was with an accountancy firm in Limerick, as I was considering this as a potential career route.  While I enjoyed it and learned a lot, I felt a career in insurance had so much to offer, so my second placement was with Ark Life (part of AIB).  This was in the life insurance claims dept. 

What impact did your co-op placement have on your future career? 

My co-op placements provided me with invaluable opportunities in terms of personal and professional growth. Not only did I hone several skills from a problem-solving point of view, but the exposure to working with and learning from talented professionals in the industry, really gave me confidence when I started my career after graduating. They also helped me decide what area I wanted to work in after graduating.

What piece of advice would you give to students going on co-op now?

As well as applying knowledge gained from your course on a practical level, use co-op to develop vital soft skills such as effective communication and teamwork, that are so important to career development.  Ask for exposure to various facets of the business in order to determine if the career and industry is the right one for you.