A role as a Third Secretary or Development Specialist Officer within the Department of Foreign Affairs includes responsibilities across a number of areas, particularly public policy. This includes preparation of analysis and research papers, preparing briefing material for Ministers and senior officials, liaison with Irish Embassies, Consulates and other diplomatic offices abroad as well as Government departments and organisations.

How does An Garda Síochána approach a high-risk situation; what kind of decisions do they need to make, and what kind of equipment do they have at their disposal? Those were just some of the questions two students from Boherbue Comprehensive School in Cork had answered when they took part in a policing simulation exercise with the Garda Armed Support Unit.

Steven joined the Civil Service as an Executive Officer, assigned to the Consular Directorate in the Department of Foreign Affairs. He tells us about the range of experience he gained in the Executive Officer role, from working in the Honorary Consuls Unit overseeing and reforming Ireland’s global network of Honorary Consuls to taking up a temporary assignment as the ‘Pathfinder’ to manage the project to open a new Consulate-General of Ireland in Frankfurt-am-Main, Germany. He has subsequently been promoted to Higher Executive Officer, working in the Project Management Office of the Department of Foreign Affairs.

Brendan tells us about his role as Executive Officer in the Secretary General’s office in the of the Department of Trade, Enterprise, and Employment, as well as having the opportunity to act as Private Secretary, acting up at the Higher Executive Officer grade.

EU Diversity Month is about raising awareness about the importance of diversity and inclusion in the workplace and across our societies. It is about the representation and visibility of different groups, where diverse perspectives are valued and integrated into the work environment.

EU Diversity Month celebrates efforts by organisations to help build equal and inclusive environments for the benefit of all. This initiative is part of the European Commission’s commitment to fight discrimination and promote diverse and inclusive workplaces.

Emer tells us about her role managing the IT for the Permanent Representation of Ireland to the European Union. She works with all the Irish departments and their representatives in the EU. She believes there is no better opportunity than working in the civil service and serving the citizens of Ireland.

Michelle joined the civil service in 2003 working in a division that coordinated economic reporting from Irish Embassies around the world. That work sparked her interest in economics, and she went back to college to study an economics degree part-time with support from the Department. She currently manages the Project Management Office in the Department of Foreign Affairs, where she and her team provide advice and support on managing projects in the Department.

Stephen began as an Executive Officer on promotion in 2005, having begun as a Clerical Officer in Revenue in 2001. He has been with Department of Justice ever since, albeit having two periods where he was seconded to the Department of Foreign Affairs to work as a Diplomat in Irish Embassies overseas. He is now engaged in the role of Visa Office manager in London following promotion. Stephen says, “it’s an honour and opportunity that would not have possible without my experiences as an Executive Officer”.

Kerry student interviews Taoiseach Micheál Martin

The student from Gaelcholáiste Chiarraí, Tralee won the prize as part of The Pitch – The Publicjobs.ie Schools Advertising Challenge

The students from Royal and Prior School, Raphoe, Co Donegal won the prize as part of The Pitch – The Publicjobs.ie Schools Advertising Challenge

Saving lives at sea, on inland waterways, up mountains and in caves; providing search and rescue response and counter-pollution measures to maritime accidents, and monitoring vessel traffic are all in a day’s work for the staff of the Irish Coast Guard, and a group of students from Donegal got a glimpse into that work during a trip to the Irish Coast Guard’s helicopter base in Sligo this week.

On International Girls in ICT Day, the United Nations International Telecommunication Union (ITU) is highlighting the need to promote technology career opportunities for girls and women in the world’s fastest growing sector. To celebrate the day, we share an interview with our Head of Digital Transformation at Publicjobs.ie, who shares her career trajectory and her advice to any girls or women interested in a career in STEM.

Competition challenged post-primary students to create an advertisement pitching the public sector as an attractive career pathway to their fellow students.

To mark International Day of Women and Girls in Science, we caught up with Clare who is Head of the Geoscience Regulation Office (GSRO) with the Department of Environment, Climate and Communications (DECC). Established in 2021, the Geoscience Regulation Office is responsible for licensing, monitoring and compliance assurance for the petroleum, minerals, mines and geothermal sectors, both on and offshore Ireland. Clare gives an insight into the work of the Geoscience Regulation Office, noting that 50% of the scientific team are female. She also details her career journey and what initially sparked her interest in a career in science.

Following on from the success of the Public Jobs Schools Resource Kit we are delighted to introduce The Pitch – The Publicjobs.ie Schools Advertising Challenge all about sparking student interest in public sector careers.

The theme of this year’s International Migrants Day (December 18th) is Harnessing the potential of human mobility. It is estimated that 3.6 per cent of the global population or 281 million people were international migrants in 2020. There are many factors that influence the movement of people; either voluntary or forced movements are a result of the increased magnitude and frequency of disasters, economic challenges and extreme poverty or conflict.

Stephen is a Watch Officer with the Marine Rescue Coordination Centre. He tells us about his career path to becoming a Watch Officer and the opportunities the role has provided him, including pursuing a Masters Degree.

A volunteer with her local Coast Guard unit, Amy decided to apply for the role of Watch Officer to utilise her skills and experience she had gained from her voluntary work and her background in the Merchant Navy. She also wanted to be a strong role model for her daughters and to show them that you can achieve anything once you put your mind to it, despite the many obstacles or hardships that may come your way.

Jason is a Station Officer with the Marine Rescue Coordination Centre, which provides national marine assistance and responds to ship casualties and maritime emergencies. He gives us an insight into the role of a Watch Officer when an emergency arises at sea.

CEO of Publicjobs.ie, Shirley Comerford, and Head of Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, Siobhán McKenna, recently participated in the Irish Human Rights and Equality Commission event Achieving Equality at Work Promoting Racial Inclusion and Diversity in Practice.

Niall commenced his career in the civil service working as a Clerical Officer in the Public Appointments Service, and has now progressed to be Vice Consul (Deputy Head of Mission) at Ireland’s Consulate General in Frankfurt, Germany. For Niall, being able to help people is one of the key reasons that he is in the job, as it is immensely rewarding.

Finbarr is a Higher Executive Officer (manager) in the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, having initially started as a Clerical Officer in the Finance unit of the Department of Education. His work involves overseeing the preparation of correspondence, parliamentary questions, ministerial briefs and speeches and working with stakeholders to ensure departmental policy objectives and priorities are communicated and met.

Osal is a Clerical Officer in the Department of Foreign Affairs. Osal tells us a little bit about his role and the opportunities that have been available to him since joining the civil service. He tells us about feeling proud to work in a particularly important area, the learning and professional development opportunities he has benefited from, and his recent promotion to an ‘acting up’ position.

Elizabeth started her career in the civil service as a Clerical Officer in the area of trade facilitation in Customs. Having benefited from a range of learning and development opportunities, she was promoted to Executive Officer (supervisor grade) in the Office of the Revenue Commissioners. Elizabeth enjoys working in the civil service as she finds the sector very family friendly, with many supports in place for employees around well-being.

Ben is a Clerical Officer in the Passport Office in Cork, which is part of the Department of Foreign Affairs. He tells us about some of the great experiences he has had in the role from chaperoning UN dignitaries from the Small Islands Developing States group on their visit to Ireland to his work chairing the diversity committee of the Department of Foreign Affairs.

Milan is a Clerical Officer in the Special Assignee Relief Programme unit in the Office of the Revenue Commissioners. He tells us about what his role entails, the career mobility opportunities he has availed of, and the excellent learning and development programmes he has benefitted from during his career in the civil service. He also offers some great first-hand advice on applying for a Clerical Officer role. 

We recently contributed to an Irish Times Special Report which highlighted how infrastructure, assistive technology and flexible hours facilitate those with disabilities. Siobhan McKenna, our Head of ED&I at the Public Appointments Service, provided her expertise and knowledge on inclusive recruitment and best practice in ED&I.

Alan is an ICT Specialist with the Department of Agriculture, Food and the Marine. Alan tells us a little bit about his role and the opportunities that have been available to him since joining the civil service. He tells us about feeling proud to work in a particularly important area, which works to ensure the protection of public health and the environment.

Justin is an ICT Specialist with the Office of the Revenue Commissioners. Justin tells us a little bit about his role and the opportunities that have been available to him since joining the civil service. He tells us about the great sense of community across the organisation and the range of activities in his division to support positive mental and physical wellbeing.  

We are delighted to announce the Public Appointments Service has won the 2021 Public Sector Award for Excellence in Recruitment Services from the Public Sector Magazine.

We are very proud to have been recognised for Excellence in Recruitment Services, in particular for being well positioned as an organisation to adapt quickly to remote working and video interviewing in light of the COVID-19 pandemic.

We are looking forward to joining a number of graduate career fairs over the coming weeks to promote the range of graduate career opportunities we have available across the Civil and Public Service. Graduate opportunities within the Civil and Public Service are designed to inspire, challenge and support the next generation of Civil and Public Service leaders.

Today, we are delighted to officially launch a new schools programme for second-level students that aims to spark their interest in the wide variety of career opportunities that are available across the public sector. The Public Jobs Schools Resource Kit presents information about public sector careers in a new way for guidance counsellors and other teachers, to build confidence around discussing career options in the public sector with students and their parents.  

Having recently joined publicjobs.ie as an ICT Specialist, Darragh tell us about his role and the opportunities for training that have been available to him, in his short time since joining the Infrastructure team.

Adrian Murtagh is an ICT Specialist with the Department of Social Protection working in Sharepoint Infrastructure. Adrian tells us a little bit about his career and the opportunities that have been available to him since joining the Civil Service.

Christine joined the Civil Service in 2019 as an ICT Specialist, working in Infrastructure. Following her recent promotion, Christine highlights how her work as an ICT Specialist gave her the opportunity to learn new skills which helped to excel her career.

Publicjobs.ie are delighted to support Ireland’s second National Diversity and Inclusion Conference - InclusionWorks2021. The event is hosted by DCU Centre of Excellence for Diversity and Inclusion in partnership with the Irish Centre for Diversity and will take place virtually on Thursday 15th April. 

We were delighted to launch our first Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion (ED&I) strategy as part of our #InclusionMatters webinar event on Tuesday 23^rd March. This lively and engaging two-hour webinar explored the theme of inclusive recruitment and employment, as well as showcasing strategies and initiatives that can help us move towards delivering a public service that is reflective of the communities it serves. 

On International Women's Day, we celebrate the achievements of women and highlight the importance of equality in leadership to create positive and productive work environments. We caught up with some of our successful women in leadership roles at publicjobs.ie who share their personal experiences in their careers and offer advice and inspiration to others to help them build fulfilling careers.

On International Women's Day, we celebrate the achievements of women and highlight the importance of equality in leadership to create positive and productive work environments. We caught up with some of our successful women in leadership roles at publicjobs.ie who share their personal experiences in their careers and offer advice and inspiration to others to help them build fulfilling careers.

On International Women's Day, we celebrate the achievements of women and highlight the importance of equality in leadership to create positive and productive work environments. We caught up with some of our successful women in leadership roles at publicjobs.ie who share their personal experiences in their careers and offer advice and inspiration to others to help them build fulfilling careers.