As 2017 draws to a close it is important to reflect on and highlight the outstanding achievement of our graduates. This year we were delighted to celebrate the success of DCU Connected graduate, Fergal Nealon, who has developed StoryTracks.ie – an award winning tourism app.
Fergal’s story is an interesting one. A professional poker player for a number of years, he decided that he wanted to put his career on a more secure footing and so returned to education in 2016. As Fergal lives in Sligo, online study through DCU Connected provided him with the perfect opportunity to complete university study without the need to relocate to Dublin. Fergal graduated in 2017 with the Certificate in Software Systems and Entrepreneurship, funded through the Government’s Springboard scheme.
As part of the Entrepreneurship and Emerging Technologies module, Fergal developed StoryTracks.ie — an app which facilitates local people to upload their stories for tourists to listen to as they travel throughout the country. The local stories connect the tourist in a very real way with the place they are visiting.
Fergal’s end of year presentation earned him a place on the prestigious DCU Ryan Academy UStart Programme, a DCU student accelerator for entrepreneurial and business development. Fergal further developed the app and went on to win “Best Pitch” at the UStart Accelerator Demo Day in October. Fregal has gone on to work with Enterprise Ireland and the app is available for download on Apple and Android devices.
Check out Fergal’s app: https://storytracks.ie/
Listen to an interview with Fergal on RTE Radio 1 Saturday 14th October. at: http://www.rte.ie/radio1/the-business/podcasts/
Digital Learning Dispatches 