Meet the Director – Nico Dowling of Atlas Language School

Meet the Director – Nico Dowling of Atlas Language School

Can you tell us about the inspiration behind starting your language centre?

Myself and Alan Brennan started the school in 2003 and Atlas Language School is now over 20 years old. We had both worked previously in the industry and both had ideas about what type of school we wanted to open. We had very little experience, basically no money and a tiny building, so we were pretty hamstrung from the start. Our idea was to build a high quality English language school, and we thought there was a space for us to fit in the industry. So despite the fact that we had very few resources, we always had this core, guiding principle in our mind. We were able to trickle along for the first few years, and as we grew and brought other people into the school, we really focused on trying to get this idea across that we wanted to deliver a high quality service for all our students while also being a fun place to work and study. And so that’s what we started to do!

What were some of the biggest challenges you faced when starting your business and how did you overcome them?

Our biggest challenge was figuring out where we could fit in the industry. We knew there were lots of different types of schools. At the time, there was a huge amount of low-cost, low-quality schools and we really wanted to avoid falling into that bracket. We looked around and saw some schools that were really doing it well and offering very high-quality service. Actually, we looked towards some of the other schools in Select Ireland who myself and Alan had experienced and worked for in the past. So we harnessed this and we really tried to figure out how we could present ourselves in this high-quality bracket. And, you know, the challenges were just trying to get resources, finding out where to go, trying to build partnerships with the right people, but also internally making sure our programs and courses were of really high standard. Our academic offering was very important to us and we recruited very strong academic staff right from the start and that allowed us to offer quality courses which have evolved into the Erasmus Plus courses that we’re running today.

How has your centre evolved since its inception?

When we started, we had two or three classrooms, and for the first four or five years we were a small school. Then, in 2010, we bought another language school, and we were able to sort of build from there, and in 2013, we found Portobello House, which is where we are now.
Portobello House is a historical, cultural building in the Dublin City Centre. It’s a unique building. It’s got great history and an amazing place for students to study. It’s a very warm and bright building. We put lot of money into it and it really became the last piece of the jigsaw for us. We felt we already had great staff, courses, accommodation and social programme and Portobello House completed the package. As part of our growth, we opened our centre in Malta in 2018. It’s a state-of-the-art purpose built facility in Pembroke and we offer a wide range of courses there. We started offering Erasmus Plus bookings last year and they have proved to be very popular. We have seen a really big increase in bookings for these courses at the start of this year.

What values or principles guide your company’s operations?

Our mission statement is ‘to make each day of our students’ language travel program an unforgettable life and learning experience’. This applies to all our different types of students, from long-term students who come for an academic year to teachers who come over for a week or two on our Erasmus+ programmes. For every one of our students, we really believe that studying abroad is much more than the course, it really is an important life and learning experience. So not just being in a classroom and doing the course, but everything else around it – their stay in Dublin, the accommodation, the social activities and any support that’s needed as well. We strive to offer high quality at every point of the students’ experience, really, from the moment they get off the plane, until they leave. In particular, for the short-term students that may only be here for one or two weeks, it’s extremely important that all our staff know that they need to be part of that whole experience.
Communicating that to our staff has been a big part of what we’ve done. And we feel as directors of the company, that’s sort of one of our biggest jobs, to make sure all our staff know what our values and principles are and how they can actually bring them into their daily work.

How do you maintain a strong company culture? Why is it important to you?

We maintain it by regularly communicating to all our staff. We talk specifically with our senior management team regularly about our values and our mission and what we’re trying to achieve. We encourage them to talk to their staff in each department about it as well. This is really the key.
Often everybody is so busy that nobody really thinks about why they’re doing their day’s work or what it means to be an employee at Atlas. So, we try to create that time and space for all our employees to really understand why it’s important. Going back to our main reasons for starting the school, we want to make sure everybody who comes to work with us and who comes and studies at Atlas has an enjoyable experience. All the team members feel part of this journey. It’s a lot easier to motivate staff when you’re offering a great service.

How do you foster collaboration and teamwork within your company?

We try to bring our staff together as much as we can across all departments. We have lots of social nights, cross-departmental meetings where the academic team work together with the sales team, with the marketing team, the accommodation team and so on. It’s essential that everybody knows what everybody else is doing. That’s very important, you know, to get that balance across the company. The staff all understand the different operations within the company and that everybody’s role is as important as each other’s.
How do you incorporate sustainability and corporate social responsibility within your company?

Sustainability is something we talk about quite a lot and we’ve actually built sustainability courses for both adults and juniors. It’s something we try to do, you know, as much as we can. Obviously, it’s difficult in an industry where so many people are travelling abroad but we do have sustainability policies. We have a green policy, and we try to promote it and communicate it not just to our staff but also to the students.
We also try to give back to charitable causes, both local and abroad and each year we choose a number of charities to donate to. We get our staff involved as well and we run regular fundraisers throughout the year. We are also offering free language courses for refugees who have recently arrived in Ireland.

What do you personally consider to be the benefits and opportunities from Erasmus + for participants and institutions?

Erasmus+ is an incredible opportunity for collaboration and the exchange of ideas for teachers and other educational staff from all across Europe. Erasmus + participants can experience for themselves a new culture and how the educational system works in different countries. We offer a range of Erasmus+ courses year-round that focus on giving them hands-on ideas and ready-to-go methods to implement in their classrooms. Also, we have run a number of closed groups of teachers or groups of staff who come over on an Erasmus+ scholarships. We can tailor these lessons so that these groups can really get the most out of the course and learn what’s immediately relevant to them.

Our academic staff really love teaching these programs. They get a lot out of it. The teachers are extremely motivated, they want to be there and love interacting and sharing ideas with the participants. We’re keen to emphasise that our teachers aren’t the only voice in class; indeed, as the classroom is full of teachers with a range of experience and expertise, it’s an excellent opportunity for our teachers to learn from them and develop professionally.
What can participants hope to achieve by attending an Erasmus + as a professional development course at your language training centre?
Participants can develop in a multitude of ways. Firstly, they’ll be part of a focused classroom with a teacher that provides insightful and useful input, as well as classmates that bring a wealth of alternative ideas and experience, providing ample opportunity for discussion and exchange of knowledge. Moreover, they’ll have a range of ideas and tasks to take back to their home institutions and implement right away, making them more versatile and confident educators. Lastly, and of no lesser importance, they’ll learn a great deal about Irish history and culture, and about the backgrounds of their classmates, so they will return home with a wider understanding of European culture and more openness to alternative ways of thinking and doing, all of which contribute to increasing their sense of European identity.

Looking ahead, what are your goals and aspirations for the future of your business?

We want to continue to grow and are constantly working on improving all aspects of our business. As part of this growth, we recently acquired a large residence for 150 students. We’ve opened a language school in Ennis in County Clare and we’re looking at other opportunities.
We’re also working on expanding our Erasmus + portfolio. This year we’ll be running Erasmus+ courses year-round. So as we do that we will start adding new courses over the course of this year, and have brought on a full-time Erasmus+ Coordinator which is a big step for us.
Looking ahead, our goals revolve around maintaining an open-minded approach to growth, exploring new avenues, and consistently elevating our brand. I love this industry and am committed to pushing the boundaries, ensuring our school remains at the forefront of educational excellence.

Learn more about Atlas Language School, Dublin