From Downing Street to Dubai | 13
“ During COP28 in Dubai , my team and I had the privilege to support His Majesty The King , the Prime Minister and many of the Cabinet at the global event . And while in Number 10 I helped arrange for the Cabinet to make a regional visit to Stoke-on- Trent and , as a Keele alumnus , I was really chuffed with that . They visited the city , went to one of the old pottery factories and someone even made it onto the Keele campus .”
While at Keele , Oliver was a member of the rowing club , played in goal for the men ’ s second hockey team and was also part of the trampolining squad . He also enjoyed a placement year in Toronto , Canada , as part of his degree . While at Keele , Oliver had his dyslexia diagnosis confirmed , which he believes was an important moment in his development .
He said : “ I remember getting my diagnosis and getting a bit down hearted and I worried about what this would mean , but Keele was amazing . Before I knew it , I had all the support and help I could ask for . Things started to make more sense , and I was able to find new and better ways of learning and working . My dyslexia allows me to see the world and ideas differently to other people . Happily , it turned out that an International Relations and Philosophy degree and dyslexia go really well together .”
Talking about his first impressions of Keele , Oliver said : “ I came to Keele for an open day and immediately fell in love with the place . It felt a little like being in a Netflix series and I got great vibes from all the people I spoke to . It didn ’ t feel too academic , but you could tell this place was serious about learning , and it felt like the right decision for me . The campus felt massive but small at the same time - I later realised that was the ‘ bubble ’ everyone talked about - that and the squirrels . I completely leaned into the social aspect and met lots of incredible people .
Leaving No . 10
“ I always knew that I was a public servant at heart and that I needed a degree in International Relations to help me get a job in Government . I ’ m naturally curious and inquisitive . Although I knew nothing about it , I was really interested in philosophy and decided to study a dual honours degree . The fact you could study dual honours at Keele was also a major pull for me , and also that it had a healthy exchange programme .
“ I really enjoyed my degree . The Professors and course leaders were an incredible bunch of people to learn from , as were my classmates . My degree has been really relevant to my job , particularly how at Keele I was able to study and live abroad while learning about international relations , including focusing on the Middle East and the state of Israel .
“ The philosophy side of the degree taught me how to think critically . I also learned how to argue constructively and debate , learning critical skills which I use every day , including having the confidence to challenge , developing an argument , knowing the right question to ask , and how to answer difficult questions .
“ Throughout my career I ’ ve always been honest with myself at what I ’ m good at , and I ’ ve capitalised on my strengths and seized opportunities with both hands when they ’ ve cropped up . Sometimes it works , sometimes it doesn ’ t . I build relationships with people , and invest in the teams I work with , which I think is really important .”
And asked for his advice to Keele ’ s current crop of students and graduates , Oliver said : “ I would say the students have already done the right thing by choosing Keele , so that already puts you in the winning team . Make yourself indispensable , find the things you love doing and if you are going to do something , be brilliant at it . Hard work is a given , but you ’ ve also got to be kind , listen to feedback and support others .
“ Keele is a special place to so many people . I ’ m so grateful for the opportunity I had to study there and for what I ’ ve gained from it .”