ATU graduate Shane has achieved success in his sports career

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St Johnstone footballer Shane Porter has gone from hesitant student to successful sporting professional at ATU Donegal.

After a four-year break from A-Levels, Shane found the perfect path to return to education and achieve his goals in sports performance and nutrition.

A graduate of ATU in Sports and Exercise Science with Training Practice (Hons) and a Master of Science in Sports Performance Practice, Shane is currently pursuing an IOC Diploma in Sports Nutrition.

Shane’s pursuit of knowledge has led to significant opportunities in the GAA. He has been a member of the Monaghan Senior auxiliary team since 2022 and recently joined Ardee St. Mary’s in County Louth as a Performance Nutritionist.

Shane initially attended Oakgrove Integrated College in Derry. After school he took a break from formal education to work in hospitality and develop an interest in physical education.

Having played football since I was five years old, the interest in sport was always present and the ATU Donegal Sports and Exercise (General Entry) course was the perfect combination of nutrition, S&C, performance analysis and physiology.

Shane admits his first year of college was difficult, but as the weeks and months passed, he adjusted and found his workload more manageable.

“Overall I had a really enjoyable five years at ATU Donegal,” he said.

“The teachers and students made it much easier because the modules were very interactive and involved teaching fellow students and juniors from the local national school, as well as group work with different classmates.”

Soon the opportunity to study locally arose.

Shane said: “In our third year of the Honors programme, we were given the opportunity to do an internship. I decided to join the Institute’s football club, where I analyzed games and practices and also paid attention to opposing teams, and it was a great experience.”

“While completing my MSc, I and other members of the class were given the opportunity to undertake a nutrition internship with the Donegal GAA Academy, which targeted all underage groups from 14 to 20 years old, which was a brilliant experience working with underage students. elite GAA players.”

Now his expertise in nutrition has led him to guest speaking at various schools, clubs and events.

Returning to education, Shane said, “was a brilliant decision.”

“I highly recommend visiting ATU Donegal. I found the sports lecturers to be very responsive and attentive when it came to assignments or any general problems. I found that within the sports course it opened a lot of doors and gave me a lot of opportunities outside of ATU.”

ATU Donegal will be holding an open day at its Letterkenny campus on Thursday 14 November (9.30am to 1pm).

Shane’s advice: Be sure to visit and ask questions about your future.

“I would recommend attending an open day as it gives you the opportunity to explore the campus. It also gives you a great opportunity to meet current students and teachers to find out more about the courses and clubs offered at ATU Donegal,” he said.

Take a tour of the university campus, meet current ATU students and discover what ATU Donegal has to offer.

The event will include the following:
– 10 department overview reports
– Student life, scholarships, accommodation negotiations
– Campus tours
– Student Help Desk and Career Advice Desk

Register for the event at:

ATU graduate Shane has achieved success in his sports career last modified: November 1, 2024 To Rachel McLaughlin

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