Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in Qatar Students Complete an Exciting Internship in a Top London Communications Consultancy Blue Rubicon

Two Georgetown University School of Foreign Service Qatar (GU-Q) students have recently completed a high-profile internship with the communications industry’s most awarded consultancy — Blue Rubicon in London.

Georgetown junior International Politics students Nadia Al Khater and Abdurrehman Naveed were chosen from over 50 applicants to benefit from the sought-after summer internship scheme designed to introduce the students to both practical and educational aspects of working in public relations based on first-hand experience.

Under the internship scheme, which is funded by Blue Rubicon LLC, Nadia and Abdurrehman took part in a robust agenda that introduced them to strategic communications, public relations, media training, crisis management and cutting-edge digital communications in a global setting. During their time in London, the students also learned about the Blue Rubicon Institute, an international centre of excellence for research, thinking and strategic consulting. The interns learned about the value of rooting your work in the latest research to help better organise campaigns and embed relevance for key audiences.

Commenting on her internship experience, GU-Q student Nadia Al Khater said, “At Blue Rubicon, I had the wonderful opportunity to work with some of the best minds in reputation management and public relations in London. With back to back training workshops, mentor sessions, and access to all levels of staff, I was very lucky to learn the processes behind Blue Rubicon.”

The internship is a result of an ongoing partnership between Blue Rubicon and GU-Q, now in its second year, which was designed to help students understand and explore the field of strategic communications, as well as experience the professional working environment in one of the most developed and sophisticated media markets.

Dr. Gerd Nonneman, Dean of Georgetown University in Qatar (GU-Q) said: “Our young partnership with Blue Rubicon has been a real success; we have so far sent two GU interns to its London office during the summer of 2014. We commend the firm for continuing to provide practical training opportunities for students and expanding their world of possibilities in terms of future career options.”

Neil Daugherty, Managing Director at Blue Rubicon in Qatar said, “The GU-Q summer internship scheme is rooted in Blue Rubicon’s commitment to Qatar, exemplified by our first international office being opened in Qatar in 2013, and is part of our strategy to invest in a local pipeline of talent in order to build ties with the community.” 

Abdurrehman Naveed, a junior at Georgetown University in Qatar and a benefactor of this year’s Blue Rubicon internship scheme, said “The summer internship at Blue Rubicon London was a wonderful learning experience. I got to experience the inner workings of a strategic communications consultancy first hand. By bringing the vigor of political campaigning into the field of strategic communications, Blue Rubicon provides an ideal work place experience for any undergraduate student looking to work in a creative, non-hierarchical environment for high-value clients.”

This year’s internship is part of Blue Rubicon’s on-going desire to build meaningful and lasting partnerships with local institutions in Qatar. Following the launch of its first international office in Qatar in September of 2013, Blue Rubicon has since opened offices in Dubai and Singapore, as well as its main offices in London.