26 January 2010

My name is Adam Harris and I am in my second year of the Foundation Degree in Horticulture at the College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE), Greenmount Campus.

I started working at the Greenacres Golf Centre, Bally Robert, for my three month work placement as an assistant groundskeeper in June.   I really enjoyed the Work Placement as it has given me a chance to develop a lot of practical and personal skills that will be of long term use to me in my future career.

It was a tough learning curve to secure a work placement that would suit my learning objectives. However it was a really useful experience. I first approached the owners by phone, not in response to an advertised vacancy so I had to sell myself from the very beginning. Once I secured this employment it gave me a lot of confidence.

The centre is well managed and is constantly being developed so I encountered many new situations in my job and I had to learn to deal with many sports turf issues. This has given me a lot of confidence, and has equipped me with a good sound knowledge of the greenkeeping and golf industry, and the practical skills required to build and maintain greens.

At Greenacres I learnt to work as part of a team, sometimes I would follow instructions from an experienced member of staff, but there were also times when I was asked to take the lead if my experience was considered greater. The company have been very good to me and encouraged me to take initiative , and to often work without close supervision. I have learnt to build Tee boxes, cut greens, maintain cutting equipment and change pin positions, all of which I have really enjoyed.

I return to the College in January to finish my Foundation degree and my future already seems bright, as I am hoping to be offered a full time post with them for when I leave CAFRE in June, economics permitting.

I would recommend that any young person wishing to work in the horticultural sector should avail of the relevant courses at CAFRE.  

For further information  on part-time and full-time courses call CAFRE on free phone number 0800 028 429.

Adam Harris outside the Greenacres Golf Centre in Bally Robert where he is completing a three month work placement as part of his Foundation Degree in Horticulture