Cian is from a 12 ha suckler farm in Longford and has always loved farming. When he was 14 years old he started relief milking, this sparked his interest in dairying.

After completing his Leaving Cert, he completed the Level 5 course in Ballyhaise. During this course, he did his three month placement on a 180 cow dairy farm in Longford which he really enjoyed.

Overview of current role

For the summer, Cian is currently working a number of jobs. He works a few days a week for a dairy farmer milking 70 cows and completes day-to-day jobs such as milking, spreading fertilizer, topping and herding. He also helps out on the 180 cow farm where he did his placement and relief milks for a number of other farmers when needed.

Up-skilling

Cian plans to use formal education to up-skill himself. The mix between practical and theory work is something he really enjoyed when doing the Level 5 qualification.

Cian has enrolled in the Level 6 Advanced Certificate in Dairy Herd Management next year and after that would like to do the Teagasc Professional Diploma in Dairy Farm Management course. As part of his Level 6 Certificate, Cian plans to travel to New Zealand this year to learn from dairy farmers there. He is also looking forward to living and working in another country.

Career goals

As his home farm is only 12 ha, Cian’s long-term aim is to get a farm manager job or enter into a partnership on a dairy farm. His current goal is to learn as much as possible about dairy farming