College course a recipe for romance for graduating couple

Two hospitality students who fell in love in college are celebrating another special milestone after graduating together at Technological University of the Shannon (TUS) last week.

Emma Lowry from Ballaghaderreen graduated with First Class Honours in Culinary Entrepreneurship, while Hannah Finneran from Athlone graduated with a Bachelor of Arts (Honours) in Hospitality Management with International Placement at the Athlone Campus of TUS.

They met in first year and became friends before romance blossomed after they worked together during the summer of their third year.

“We met in first year on two different courses and became friends over time. Then, after working together over the summer in third year, we got into a relationship and have been together ever since,” said Emma.

“It is really nice to be able to graduate together. We feel very lucky to be able to do it together and we are very happy.”

Both are now looking forward to careers in the hospitality sector, where they say there are plenty of opportunities for graduates.

Emma said she thoroughly enjoyed her time at TUS. “The course was great. I loved it. There were lots of different subjects and I would definitely recommend it.”

Hannah added: “The course covered everything you need going forward in the industry. The lecturers were great and really looked after us. We also had small classes, with only a handful of students in each, so we got that extra attention.”