ATU Galway / Mayo
ATU Galway / Mayo
Course Code
GA_SFIEG_S09
Zone
Attendance
Blended

Course Summary

ATU Galway has developed this 16-week part-time course to enable ambitious students to transform their ideas into new businesses. The course is not taught in a traditional classroom setting. Students will have the opportunity to interact with a broad range of project hosts, practitioners, industry leaders, and entrepreneurs.

College Link

ATU Galway / Mayo
College Link > GA_SFIEG_S09 - Food Innovation & Entrepreneurship - Galway

Colleges often have information about the course on their own website, along with other useful information relating to the college. (Note: Not always available)

Career Sectors

This course prepares you for working in the Career Sectors below. Follow the links to get a fuller understanding of the sectors you are preparing for.

Entry Requirements

Honours Degree (Level 8) in any discipline, or an Ordinary Degree (Level 7) in any discipline plus two years of relevant experience working/ self employed in the area of food entrepreneurship/ innovation, or five years working/self employed of relevant experience in the area of food entrepreneurship/innovation.

Application Details

Start Date: September 2026.

Fees

Total Fees: €2200.

The Student

Career Interests

This course is typically suited for people with the following Career Interests. If these interests do not describe you, this course may prepare you for work you may not find satisfying.

Enterprising

Enterprising people like situations that involve using resources for personal or corporate economic gain. Such people may have an opportunistic frame of mind, and are drawn to commerce, trade and making deals. Some pursue sales and marketing occupations. Many will eventually end up owning their own business, or in management roles in larger organisations. They tend to be very goal-oriented and work best when focused on a target. Some have an entrepreneurial inclination.


Naturalist

Not surprisingly, some aspect of the natural sciences will run through the Naturalist's interests - from ecological awareness to nutrition and health. People with an interest in horticulture, land usage and farming (including fish) are Naturalists.

Some Naturalists focus on animals rather than plants, and may enjoy working with, training, caring for, or simply herding them. Other Naturalists will prefer working with the end result of nature's produce - the food produced from plants and animals. Naturalists like solving problems with solutions that show some sensitivity to the environmental impact of what they do. They like to see practical results and prefer action to talking and discussing.


Career Progression

Careers
This course is focused on forming and supporting job creators. Throughout the course, participants are encouraged to seriously consider food entrepreneurship as a viable alternative to employment. There is a strong emphasis on the development of implementable and sustainable economic and social entrepreneurship ventures and projects.

In addition to the development of technical and transferable skills required for entrepreneurial activity, we also offer individual practical supports to participants who have identified business ideas, which they wish to pursue further. In such cases we act as a start-up platform introducing participants to experts and mentors as well as potential sources of funding.

For those seeking employment, rather than hoping to create employment, the course provides participants with sought-after skills in the areas of creative thinking, innovation, opportunity recognition, networking and team building, entrepreneurial thinking and action. Confidence building and ability to act autonomously, as well as peer-to-peer network development will be a strong features of our course. Standard CV and interview preparation are offered to all participants but due to the nature of the course are not always required.

Duration

1 semester part-time blended delivery.

Recommended Study Hours per week
There will be two days of lectures per week (the majority is online, with three on-campus sessions in the semester).

On-Campus Attendance Requirement
The majority of this programme is online, with three on-campus sessions in the semester.

Note: Check programme Examination and Assessment requirements, as they may involve examinations to be taken on campus.
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