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Alumni Newsletter

January 2015

There is a lot happening over the next couple of months among the alumni community to help keep spirits high and take us through to the spring. There is a dating agency launching in New York after being successfully established in London, "Poetry in London" is holding its first event of 2015 in February and a City based networking event to be held in London, also in February. Our Day in the Life of article features a published author, whilst our Alum of the Month is the manager of a private members Arts Club in Ireland and a radio presenter amongst other roles. This is a heavily arts oriented issue!

As many of you who attended our 30th Anniversary Gala event in London already know, our special guest speaker, the Honourable Timothy Knatchbull, son of our Patron Lady Patricia Mountbatten and grandson of the late Earl Mountbatten, is also a published author having written a book "From a Clear Blue Sky" Surviving the Mountbatten Bomb, an autobiographical account of how the IRA bombing that left him sadly without his grandfather, and crucially, his identical twin brother Nicholas. The book gives us insight into how he managed to come to terms with this huge loss over the course of the last 30 years, and also conveys the prominent position the Mountbatten family played in diplomacy and international education.

On a final note, as our alumni network continues to expand via our LinkedIn group, we are increasingly attracting a variety of job opportunities specifically for you, so do check our jobs section below.

Update Your Details

We would like you all to give us your current details update, as it helps us to know where you are for future events and various alumni activities as well as update your email subscription. Update your details now.

Spread the Mountbatten Word

The deadlines for our August 15 intakes in London & New York are coming up - do you know someone you recommend should apply? There's still time, Any questions? Contact us. Also, are you in touch with your university? We are doing our recruitment rounds now so it would be great if you could email your university careers service and tell them about the programme and how it helped you with your career.

 

Alum of the month

Sarah Leahy
September 2006 - New York

"My internship year in New York was life changing, character building - I grew so much as a person. Get involved with everything, try new things, make friends outside the programme, travel."
Read full story
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Forthcoming Events

Networking Reception in London
Tue 24 Feb 2015 - 6:30pm

We will be holding an alumni and current intern networking drinks reception in The City - Venue TBC.

Pub Quiz in New York
Wed 1 Apr 2015

The next GREAT British Pub Quiz at the Churchill in NYC is on Wednesday 1st April 2015. Please email Jo Harvey if you would like to participate.

A day in the life of...

Kersti Niebruegge (August 2004 - London): My Mountbatten year is a nice anomaly. It's the only job I've had outside of TV. After Mountbatten, I studied comedy writing at the Upright Citizens Brigade, and have worked at BBC Worldwide, Conan and Late Night with Seth Meyers. I also just published my first book, a satire about the Northwoods called, Mistake, Wisconsin. So what's a day like working on a late night comedy show and an evening spent writing?

MORNING - super sleep-deprived from writing all night, I drink a lot of coffee at work while scanning the news. Did anything happen overnight to today's guests? Do the writers need clips for research or sketches? Most importantly, did our office kitchen fridge get restocked with soda?

AFTERNOON - Staff production meeting where I find out what's happening in the show. Late night talk shows are daily, so all of the problems need to be solved today. Do I need to find an old potato chip commercial for a guest? Did the movie studio deliver the promo clips in the correct format? For real, why is there no soda in the fridge yet?! Rehearsal begins. A comedy bit gets cut and a new one is added. But someone restocked the soda!!!

EVENING - Last minute scramble to acquire a new promo clip because the guest doesn't like the one the studio sent. I run like Joan Cusack in Broadcast News to get the new clip to edit. Whew! The show tapes before an audience, and I get home just in time to watch The Goldbergs (this is very important). I try to write my book, script etc. without being totally distracted by the new episode of The Goldbergs. I go to bed at 2am when I'm getting nowhere with a scene about puking in church, even though it's really fun to write.

And my dear Mountbatten friends, that's a day-in-the-life. You can check out the lutefisk-induced puking scene in Mistake, Wisconsin (available on Amazon). But I think the main lesson I learned here is that I'll work for free soda.

Alumni Dating in New York

After enjoying a big success in London, Social Concierge, the dating club owned by Nana Wereko-Brobby (March 2009 - New York) is being launched in New York on Friday 6th February. Click here to join in the fun and get all details.

Alumni Poetry in London

Kemi Taiwo (March 2012 - New York) made the New York poetry scene a large part of her experience; she was a member of a NY based poetry collective and performed in several states across the US. Now back in the UK, Kemi runs the "Poetry in London" group with over 4000 members! The group has now branched out into live events at the Poetry Cafe in London's Covent Garden.

Kemi is delighted to invite you to their first live event of the year! There will be a few Open Mic spots, a Feature Act, a discussion on this month's theme and the opportunity to network with others. You should walk away from the night having been entertained, educated, involved and armed with an army of new contacts and friends! An exclusive 10% discount is available for all Mountbattens. Use the code: mountbatten. Get your tickets now!

Events

Alumni Pub Quiz in New York - Wed 14 Jan 2015

Our second intrepid Mountbatten Alumni team, named 'Club Ability' participated in the GREAT British Pub Quiz at the Churchill in NYC. The team was: Jesse Spielvogel, Sam Kerr, Frances Monroy, Victoria Golden, Tara Roach and Sarah Leonard. The team did really well, particularly in the music round - lots of fun had by everyone! Thank you all for representing us so well! The quizmaster was of course another Mountbatten Alum - the majestic Charles Arrowsmith! Next quiz is on Wednesday 1st April 2015. Please email Jo Harvey if you would like to participate at the next one, or if you have some Mountbatten Alumni Team Names!

Alumni Reunion in Dublin - Tue 20 Jan 2015

Whilst doing the Dublin universities presentation circuit, Paul Sutherland (Marketing & Recruitment Director), accompanied by Gary Ball (Deputy Director General), hosted an alumni Get Together at House Dublin, Ireland. Some 12 Dublin based alumni enjoyed drinks and nibbles whilst they reminisced about their Mountbatten year, and shared their experiences with Gary and Paul, as well as potential Programme candidates. The venue provided the perfect backdrop for what was a really good evening with a wonderfully buoyant atmosphere, in spite of the cold outside. Next year's event is already being pencilled in!

Jobs

Cantor Fitzgerald are looking for a Product Controller in New York; Ramsey Portia have vacancies in both their Edinburgh and London offices; Twitter hopes to engage an Associate Partnerships Manager on a 6 month contract for the UK Election 2015 (London); and the British Consulate is recruiting for a role in Houston, Texas. To find out about these and all other current vacancies, please go to our alumni website.

Jo Harvey: jharvey@mountbatten.org
Vicki McCordall: vmccordall@mountbatten.org
web: http://alumni.mountbatten.org