Young Alumni Ambassadors Group

The UCD School of Veterinary Medicine launched a new initiative for our Veterinary Medicine and Veterinary Nursing alumni in 2023 - the Young Alumni Ambassadors Group (YAAG).

The YAAG was established following discussions with current students and recent graduates around how the School can engage with and support new graduates in the years after they leave UCD. The YAAG will help to foster interaction and communication between the School and its recent graduates through establishing a shared sense of community - cultivating and encouraging a continuing affiliation among young alumni and the institution.

The Group will promote and support the School’s programmes and activities through outreach and engagement with recent graduates and the wider UCD Veterinary Community, including current and prospective students. The work of the Group will support the School’s mission to be an inclusive community, delivering excellence in education, research and clinical endeavour.

The School hopes that through the YAAG, it can tap into constructive feedback from recent graduates, and that the Group will act as a peer-to-peer network through which alumni can be assured feedback and suggestions are brought to the attention of the School. It will also serve as a sounding board for new ideas and will support ongoing efforts to improve academic, social and career experiences and create continued engagement opportunities for all members of our community.

Please see below for profiles of some of the current members of our Young Alumni Ambassadors Group.

For more information on the Young Alumni Ambassadors Group, please contact Dr Helen Graham, Communications Manager: (opens in a new window)helen.a.graham@ucd.ie

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Young Alumni Ambassadors Group - Member Profiles

Alaina Bush

Born in Minnesota and raised in Kansas (USA), Alaina earned a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology with minors in Biological Sciences & Chemistry from Wichita State University in 2014. For the next 4 years, she worked full-time in a small animal veterinary practice as a veterinary technician and receptionist while trying to get into Veterinary School and was pleased to accept a place in the 5-year MVB programme at UCD in 2018. Following her graduation from UCD in June 2023, Alaina became licensed to practice in the state of Kansas. In August this year, she began work as an Associate Veterinarian in Small Animal General Practice at El Paso Animal Hospital in Derby, Kansas.

Alice Walsh

Alice is a 2021 UCD Veterinary Medicine graduate. Having conducted research during the course of her degree on the factors influencing the efficiency of the gamma interferon blood test for bovine tuberculosis, she decided to follow her interests in further education post-graduation. She secured a Teagasc PhD Walsh Scholarship in October 2021 and is currently researching the effects of milking management factors on dairy cow udder health with a particular focus on parlour technologies. She is set to graduate with her PhD in 2025. Alice joined the Young Alumni Ambassadors Group to inspire and support students who may wish to explore career options outside of traditional clinical practice and to give back to the UCD School of Veterinary Medicine who provided such support and opportunities for her.

Audrey Saint-Marc

Audrey graduated in June 2023 from the 4-year Veterinary Medicine Graduate Entry programme. She is currently working in the south of France at a small animal clinic that sees exotics and the occasional goat and sheep. Originally from Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Audrey decided to get involved in the Young Alumni Ambassadors Group as she thoroughly appreciated her time in Dublin and at UCD and would like to stay in contact with UCD and aid potential applicants or current students attending the UCD School of Veterinary Medicine.

Ben Poynter

Benjamin Poynter is an Honours Bachelor of Science graduate from the University of Guelph. He subsequently completed a Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine in 2017 at UCD. Ben is a small animal veterinarian, with special interests in surgery and orthopaedic conditions. He maintains a membership with the College of Veterinarians of Ontario and Ontario Veterinary Medical Association. Ben, his wife, Alyssa, and their daughter live with their many animals - they have two dogs, Wally and Hadley, and three cats, Josie, Mitzy, and Minnie. When not at work, he enjoys spending time with his family and pets, playing hockey, fishing, and woodworking.

Brianna Creighton

As an ‘Army Brat,’ Brianna moved constantly growing up but through all the changes, her love for animals remained constant. She cultivated her love for animals and healing through riding horses, caring for her family dog and volunteering at wildlife centers and zoos. In 2010, Brianna graduated from Virginia Tech with a Bachelors in Biology and then continued to work in cancer research for 4 years. After being accepted on to the Veterinary Medicine programme at UCD, she graduated in 2018 and continued to Alvarado, Texas for a mixed animal internship working on cattle, goats, sheep, horses, cats, dogs and small exotics. She spent a year in Northern Virginia expanding her small animal practice skills and knowledge before joining the team at Anicira veterinary practice. Brianna lives with her husband in Middleburg with their dog Luna and three cats, Troiste, Mumbo and Bixby. In her free time, she likes to garden, practice yoga, hike and relax.

Bryan Deane

Originally from Belmullet in Co Mayo, Bryan graduated from the UCD School of Veterinary Medicine in 2018. He then moved to the UK, where he completed a Postgraduate Diploma in Veterinary Clinical Practice with the Royal Veterinary College while working in a large farm animal practice in Dorset. Bryan has since returned to Ireland and spent the last few years in mixed (predominantly farm animal) practice in various areas around the country. He also worked as a Clinical Fellow in the UCD Veterinary Hospital for a brief period, managing referral cases and teaching final year students. Bryan is currently working as a Veterinary Officer with the Health Products Regulatory Authority, where he is responsible for the assessment of safety and efficacy of veterinary medicinal products. Outside of work his interests include running, cooking and being active in general.

Danielle Guglielmo

Danielle started her veterinary journey in 2016 working as a Veterinary Technician at her local practice in Brooklyn, New York. She quickly realised that she wanted to become a veterinarian and upon graduating high school, she left New York to study Veterinary Medicine at UCD. Danielle graduated from UCD in June 2023. She has a special interest in ultrasonography and anaesthesiology and hopes to gain certifications in these areas in the future. She’s currently working as a small animal veterinarian at her local practice where it all started: Marine Park Veterinary Group.

Fiona Sahyoun

Fiona graduated from UCD in 2021, having completed the Veterinary Medicine Graduate Entry programme. Fiona is from Toronto, Canada where she completed her BSc in the Biological Sciences with a focus on Wildlife Conservation at the University of Guelph in 2016. During her time at UCD, she was an auditor of the European Veterinary Business Alliance (EVBA) and the One Health Society. She was also an active member of the Peer Mentor group for incoming students and is excited to extend this role as an alumna. Fiona works as a small animal veterinarian at Palmerstown Veterinary Hospital in Dublin where she is fear-free certified. She has a keen interest in exotic medicine and continues to develop her skills set in this area. Furthermore, she also enjoys internal medicine and ultrasonography. In her free time, Fiona can be found along the coast of Dublin bird watching and sea swimming.

Julie Edmondson

Julie grew up in County Wicklow and began horse-riding at the age of 4. She moved to Dublin for senior school where she developed a keen interest in Agricultural Science. She studied Agricultural Science at UCD from 2015 to 2019 and then went on to study Veterinary Medicine at UCD. Julie chose to pursue the graduate entry route to the course as she did not achieve the points the first time around, owing to her Dyslexia. Out of 200 Irish based applicants, she was one of only 6 students to get a place on the 4-year programme that year. She completed an externship with B.W Furlong and Associates in New Jersey in the summer of 2022, and returned for an internship in 2023. Her professional interests are sports medicine and surgery. She values personal fitness and enjoys cycling, running and competing in CrossFit. Julie decided to join the YAAG as she loved every part of her time in UCD and wanted to stay connected to both UCD and the Vet School.

Katie Walsh

Katie graduated from the Veterinary Medicine programme in UCD in June of this year. She has a keen interest in Emergency & Critical Care and Anaesthesia and hopes to further develop her skills in these areas in the coming years. She is taking up a position as a Small Animal Rotating Intern in the UK this September. Katie joined the Young Alumni Ambassadors Group as she would like to support new graduates as they transition from student to the veterinary profession.

Lauren Curran

Lauren graduated with a first class honours degree in Veterinary Nursing from UCD in June 2023. She is thrilled to have the opportunity to be currently completing an internship in the UCD Veterinary Hospital. She is also the new student representative for the Irish Veterinary Nursing Association (IVNA). Lauren joined the Young Alumni Ambassadors Group to connect with other recent graduates and to share her experience of transitioning from student to new grad with future colleagues coming through the UCD School of Veterinary Medicine and she is looking forward to embarking on this new venture as she starts her Veterinary Nursing career.

Sarah Barry

Sarah is a 2021 Veterinary Medicine graduate. After graduating from UCD, she spent a year in small animal practice in Ireland before jumping the Irish Sea and she is currently working in a small animal clinic in the North West of England. She has an interest in clinical pathology, surgery and ophthalmology. Sarah also really enjoys being able to support and mentor new graduates and undergraduate student vets and vet nurses and this is why she joined the Young Alumni Ambassadors Group. Outside of work, Sarah enjoys exploring the British countryside, playing music and writing.

Shauna O’Brien

Shauna is from Co Kildare, and she graduated from UCD’s Veterinary Medicine programme in 2017. She has worked in mixed practice in both Ireland and Canada since leaving UCD. She currently lives in Ontario with her two cats (who travel to work with her), where she sees a diverse range of patients from the littlest sugar glider to the tall Canadian Holstein. She enjoys helping students and other vets in the equally important ways of sharing information and drinking tea with them. When not working, she likes hiking, canoeing, and attempting to survive riding her horse.

Taylor Fisher

Taylor is a graduate of the UCD Veterinary Medicine Class of 2018. She is originally from the US, but always wanted to study abroad; her time in Ireland was unforgettable and she still misses it! Taylor enjoyed exploring the beautiful island of Ireland and found it easy to travel around the rest of Europe from there. After graduation, she started working in a split small mammal, small ruminant, and exotic private practice for a couple of years. She switched over to shelter medicine shortly thereafter, providing relief work for local shelters and working with a high volume-high quality spay neuter clinic. While Taylor learned a lot from her clinical experience, she really wanted to enter the field of wildlife population health so she is currently pursuing a master’s degree with the University of Georgia where she will be studying pathogens associated with feral pig habitats. This is one of the many reasons Taylor loves her chosen field - there are so many different career options!

Valerie Sheehy

Valerie is a 2024 Veterinary Medicine graduate. She grew up on a dairy farm in Limerick and had an avid interest in farming from a young age. Valerie always wanted to be a vet and achieved this lifelong dream when she got the points to get into the Veterinary Medicine (MVB) programme in UCD. Following completion of her final year rotations and placements, Valerie knew that she wanted to specialise in farm animal practice, particularly dairy herd health. Valerie is starting a farm animal internship in Dorset in England this year and is interested to see where this will lead her! Valerie joined the Young Alumni Ambassadors Group as she loved her time at UCD and wants to keep in touch with the School of Veterinary Medicine and continue to play a part in the development of the University.

Contact the UCD School of Veterinary Medicine

UCD Veterinary Sciences Centre, University College Dublin, Belfield, Dublin 4, Ireland.

T: +353 1 716 6100 | Location Map

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