DCU Alumni Awardee Caron McCaffrey

In 2018, Caron became the first female Director General of the Irish Prison Service (IPS) with responsibility for providing leadership and direction to a service that has over 4,400 people in its care with a team of more than 3,500 staff and a budget of €414 million. She has also served on the board of The European Organisation of Prison and Correctional Services (EuroPris) since 2019. Europris is open to those European national Prison and Correctional Administrations which are able and willing to support the agreed aims and objectives of the Association. In October 2021, Caron was elected as the current President of Europris.


The Director General (DG) of the Irish Prison Service has responsibility for the leadership and management of the Service and the implementation of Government policies and strategies. The DG is accountable for providing strong leadership and direction in a complex and rapidly evolving pressurised environment with a team of more than 3,400 staff and a budget of approximately €414 million.

MA International Relations, 1999