About me
Hey! 👋 I’m Dan, a full-stack software engineer from Northern Ireland. I’m studying towards a BSc (Hons) Computing Systems degree at Ulster University, alongside working for Kainos as an Apprentice Software Engineer in the Healthcare sector. 🎓
I’m the majority shareholder and a co-founder of Verglas, a Belfast-based Edtech software and events company. Since 2022, I have been Lead Event Coordinator, and have overseen the execution of many successful events for over 500 students from NI. 🤝
I’ve been programming since I was 7; my skills advancing from making silly little POS systems in C# to play “shop” with my friends, to developing full-stack applications that actually make a difference to the millions of people who use them across the UK and afar. 🚀
Outside of tech, I’m a hugely passionate linguist. I’ve always been captivated by language, starting to teach myself Icelandic at age 9 and moving onto Norwegian and Finnish in my teenage years. I’m also interested in linguistic reconstruction. 🇮🇸
I’m fascinated by how language influces culture, personal identity, and how we view the world (and vice versa). It’s my dream, after I graduate, to travel the world and hopefully settle down somewhere far north, experiencing life from an entirely new perspective. 🌍
For the last couple of years, I’ve also been a huge Eurofan – getting tickets to watch Eurovision live from both Liverpool in 2023 and Malmö in 2024. I love to travel, and am known amongst my friends as the guy who is always taking impulsive last-minute flights. 🎶
Education and experience
University of Ulster (Sep’24-)
EQF Level 6 (EU) / RQF Level 6 (UK)
Bachelor of Science with Honours, Computing Systems
Slemish College (Sep’22-Jun’24)
EQF Level 4 (EU) / RQF Level 3 (UK)
BTEC National Extended Certificate, in Business (DIST)
2x GCE A-Level, in Software Systems Development (A) and Geography (B)
Slemish College (Sep’20-Jun’22)
EQF Level 3 (EU) / RQF Level 2 (UK)
9x GCSE A*-A, including English Language and Mathematics
Kainos (Sep’24-)
Belfast, Northern Ireland
Apprentice Software Engineer
(Digital Services – Healthcare Sector)
Verglas (Oct’22-)
Belfast, Northern Ireland
Lead Event Coordinator
Board of Directors
TRAVELS
I’ve always loved travelling – there’s just something about getting on a plane and exploring somewhere new that gives me the biggest adrenaline rush. ✈️ I started to drive at the end of 2022 and in the years since then I’ve felt the benefits of absolute freedom – late night drives to Donegal or Cork twice a week, chasing the sunset up to Binevenagh every night over summer, or just driving around at 2am with friends, no destination in mind, screaming our lungs out to a 2000s pop hits playlist. 🚗
While, yes, Ireland has some beautiful sights – that’s not all there is to the world. Taking a summer weekend trip to Stockholm with two friends in 2023 was the start of my impulsive travelling; I now visit my friends in Sweden 2-3 times a year and I’m on a plane to Iceland every few weeks! ✈️
I’m a DiscoverEU Ambassador, and in August 2024, I was given the opportunity to travel Europe fully-funded by the European Commission. I flew to Stockholm to meet a friend and we spent the next 2 weeks taking night buses and sleeper trains across 15 countries, exploring, eating, and taking photos (on zero sleep and in 35°C heat… eugh). 🇪🇺