Past pupil charging ahead for a brighter tomorrow
We are extremely proud of past pupil Seamus O'Driscoll who is scaling new heights with the DCU Solar Racing Team.
Seamus graduated from Chanel College in 2023 and went on to study engineering in DCU. In his first year of college, he joined the DCU Solar Racing Team as one of their mechanical engineers.
DCU Solar Racing is a student-led team that has built Ireland's first solar racing car - Solas. Students from a range of disciplines worked together to design, fundraise, manufacture and test a vehicle powered entirely by the sun, while gaining hands-on experience in engineering, innovation and project management.
Having brought the Solar racing car from concept to reality, they are now representing Ireland on the international stage by competing in global solar racing competitions such as the 24h Ilumen Solar challenge.
Seamus was directly involved in designing the rear suspension system of the car.
He demonstrated creativity, an amazing capacity for innovation, technological competence and teamwork.
With his teammates, Seamus is pushing the boundaries of engineering, sustainable transport and renewable energy.
Who knows what the future holds. We will be watching closely and thank Seamus for being such an amazing ambassador for Chanel College.
Testimonial from Seamus himself...
When I was in school, the teachers asked, "Well, what do you want to do with yourself?" I responded with, "I want to be a race engineer for a Formula One team." It would have been easy to tell me that's too big a dream, too ambitious or too difficult for a young man from Coolock. But when I said what I wanted to do with my life, the staff and fellow students did not put me down. They responded with praise, telling me "to shoot for the stars, and if I fell, I'd land in the clouds." Time after time, the Chanel community reinforced and supported my dreams, as well as those of my classmates. They believed in us and helped us in any way they could, from extra maths classes on a Wednesday, to organising careers talks so that I could ask engineers what to expect when I went to college. I look back on my time in Chanel College fondly and with a smile.
Seamus O'Driscoll
4th Year Engineering Student DCU
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