SHSS Alumnae Link - Hannah O'Leary

Welcome to SHSS Alumnae Link!

This is where we connect with past pupils and find out what they’re up to now.

This week we linked with Hannah O’Leary who graduated in 2015.

Name and position:

Hannah O’Leary MSc Psychology – Researcher with the Pregnancy Loss Research Group CUMH | INFANT Centre UCC

Lives:

Clonakilty.

Best memory of Sacred Heart: 

Joining Sacred Heart for my Leaving Cert year was incredibly daunting. I had just made the move from Galway to Cork, and I was anxious about joining the year group with only a couple of months of secondary school left ahead. Also, coming from a mixed primary and secondary school, I was slightly apprehensive of the all-female dynamic I was walking into.  Needless to say, I had wasted my time with unjustified worries. Not only did the students and staff welcome me with open arms from my very first day, but the dynamic of being surrounded by highly ambitious females was incredibly motivating.

My best memory of Sacred Heart was the heartfelt welcoming I received my very first day which continued throughout a thoroughly enjoyable school year. And although I spent just one year there, I made the best of friends at SHSS which I still have today.  

What were your favourite classes? 

My favourite classes were Gaeilge with Ms Long, English with Ms Hayes and Economics with Ms Hennessy

Tell us about your career progression to date: 

After completing a Joint Honours Degree in Criminal Justice & Psychology at the University of Limerick, I was still quite unsure of whether I wanted to pursue a career in law or psychology. I had originally planned to flee down under to explore Oz and do a bit of soul searching. But the beloved pandemic had other plans in store for me… 

So, amidst the constraints of the pandemic and somewhat of an identity struggle which ensued… I decided to lean into my creative side that I had very rarely given attention to but yearned for quite regularly. I completed a Masters in Digital Media at National University of Ireland, Galway, and started a new job as in Communications and Public Engagement at the INFANT Research Centre, a research centre focused entirely on pregnancy, birth and early childhood. Although I thoroughly enjoyed telling INFANT’s story and sharing exciting ground-breaking research, I soon realised that my interest in and talent for media was not inspiring me as much as I hoped it would have. I found myself wanting to be directly involved in the research conducted at INFANT rather than narrating it.  

Back to the drawing board. 

After a LOT of research of my own and deep diving inward, I decided that my interests and skills were better suited to a career in psychology. 

Last year, I completed an MSc in Psychology at Canterbury Christ Church University. Though it was tough studying while working fulltime, I loved every second of it. I particularly loved areas of developmental and clinical psychology.  After completing my Masters in Psychology, I joined the Pregnancy Loss Research Group at the INFANT Research Centre as a researcher on the RE:CURRENT project, valuating recurrent miscarriage services in Ireland to inform efforts to standardise and improve the quality of these services. I adore the work, especially being part of such a multidisciplinary team, and being amongst exceptionally talented, established, and knowledgeable healthcare professionals.  I am incredibly proud to have earned two masters in two years, though the learning hasn’t stopped yet. While I expand upon my research skills at The Pregnancy Loss Research Group, I am continuing to work on building a career in psychology by increasing my experience in child psychology, adult mental health, and disability services. I have just completed training in the Bayley’s Scale of Infant and Toddler Development, I am currently in training as a mental health crisis helpline worker, and I volunteer every week at Co-Action disability services in Clonakilty.

If you weren’t in the job you have, what would you be doing?

I would love to go back to Nansana Uganda where I volunteered in the summer of 2019 and provide neurodevelopmental assessments and early intervention therapies for young children with developmental disabilities. Maybe someday!

Advice you would give your teenage self:

I would tell my younger self to stop worrying that you don’t have everything figured out yet. You have SO much time to figure it out. EVEN if it means figuring out what you don’t want to do first. You have something to gain from every single experience you have, it’s all about perspective, and making the most of it!

Favourite quote or motto? 

 "Whoever is happy will make others happy too." -Anne Frank

What is your hidden talent?

I am very good at acting like I don’t want to sing or play the guitar when I actually really do … you just have to ask me 25 times! 

Huge thank you to Hannah for taking the time to answer our questions. See you soon for the next instalment of SHSS Alumnae Link.