Greenwich students embedded with Royal Navy during exercise
Two students from the University of Greenwich have been embedded with the Royal Navy during an exercise called Joint Warrior. They helped the media teams covering the exercise off the coast of Scotland to produce daily papers and news broadcasts for those taking part.
Merin McDonald and Sam Perkins, studying BA (Hons) in Journalism and PR, joined journalism teams taking part in the international exercise which involved the Royal Navy, British Army and Royal Air Force, as well as forces from a number of other countries including the United States.
Merin who was on board an American ship, during the exercise said afterwards: "the trip was an invaluable experience and advice from experienced journalists had been a huge benefit. At times it was tough and I definitely felt thrown into the deep end but learning to cope with that kind of situation and still be productive is one of the skills I will need as a journalist. I also learnt the value of self-reliance. I had loads of fun." The ship that Merin was onboard was the destroyer, USS Laboon.
Sam said: "I absolutely loved the trip. I am genuinely considering a military media career after university. I guarantee all students would find this a wonderful experience and an enjoyable time."
A Royal Navy spokesman said students from the university joined the major exercise involving 21 surface ships, five submarines and 50 aircraft units including the Royal Navy’s Carrier Strike Group led by HMS Ark Royal. "The main University of Greenwich campus where the students are based played a significant part in British naval history as the Royal Naval College," he said.
The students’ tutor Kathy Watson, Programme leader for Journalism and PR, said it was valuable both for the students and for the programme as they shared their experience with the other students. "It’s great to see the university’s historic link with the Royal Navy further cemented and I hope we can build on this."
Ends
For further information and photos please contact:
Nick Davison
Public Relations
University of Greenwich
020 8331 8092
Press contacts:
Kathy Watson
University of Greenwich
0208 331 8946
Andy Reeds
Crown Media
andrew.reeds@crown-media.co.uk
01634 853588
Notes to editors
The BA (Hons) in Journalism and PR was launched in 2008 and the first cohort of students is in its second year. Many of the students are undertaking work experience on a range of newspapers, magazines and with PR companies to build their portfolios of work for employers.
Picture Caption: Sam Perkins of the University of Greenwich at work during the exercise.