As part of our MII Graduate Communications and start of the new academic year, we chatted with Barbara Dunne, Digital Marketing Manager of PurpleTag.ie and MII 2020 MSc Scholarship recipient.
In your own words, why did you choose to apply to the MSc in Digital Marketing & Analytics in TU Dublin?
In the Spring 2020 there was – in terms of propelling me along the course that would eventually lead me to apply for and accept a place on the MSc in Digital Marketing and Analytics at TUD – what you might call ‘a perfect storm’.
From an earlier career in marketing in Ireland and the US, followed by roles in research and management consultancy, I moved into part time business support roles to facilitate looking after my three sons. After a number of years, I was keen to move back into a full-time fulfilling role. I had been looking after paid FB and Google AdWords marketing campaigns for PurpleTag.ie, an Irish online shoe store, and in January 2020, the full-time marketing manager left the company. Shortly afterwards, the pandemic hit and all hell broke loose.
I didn’t feel I had the full suite of digital marketing skills to step into the role full time but – with an undergraduate marketing degree – it seemed like I could be a good fit, with some upskilling. In April I enrolled in the Executive Diploma in Strategic Digital Marketing run by the MII/TUD which would prove to be hugely rewarding for me and useful to the company at exactly the time it was needed. As the next step up from this course was the MSc, it made sense for me to apply for it and for the scholarship.
Do you feel the scholarship application process gave you a chance to showcase yourself and your proposal?
The scholarship process was very straightforward and not at all rigid. It allowed me to decide what I thought would make sense to put forward about myself and my reasons for wanting to do the MSc. Fortunately the assessing team like what I wrote – I was shortlisted and invited to give an online presentation in which I summarised why I wanted to do the MSc, how it fit with my experience to date, my interests and my ambitions to advance my marketing skills, and how it could ultimately benefit an Irish SME – allowing the company to strengthen its competitive position and continue to provide jobs.
What does it meant to you to be rewarded a scholarship for the MSc in Digital Marketing & Analytics ?
Firstly, it was an incredible honour to be chosen as one of the scholarship recipients and I felt it was an endorsement of my potential to benefit from the MSc. Being awarded the scholarship means that I have access to a top quality Masters programme without a significant financial burden and I am really looking forward to getting started at the end of September
Find out more about our MSc in Digital Marketing & Analytics here.
