the wellington college year book 2010/2011
104
area with 70 million people, an economy
comparable in size to Germany’s and some of
the us’s main economic centres. Chicago is
the home of President Obama’s 2012 election
campaign hq and several of his potential
Republican opponents are from the Midwest
so the politics are interesting too.
There’s no average day: in the same week
I might find myself talking to a the ceo of a
major corporation about investing in the uk,
meeting a potential Presidential candidate,
speaking to an audience at a university business
school or visiting the further flung parts of
my patch?—?North Dakota or Kentucky?—?to
develop business opportunities with a trade
mission. My previous jobs were equally varied.
Would I follow the same career again?? Yes,
without hesitation. The fco offers a unique
combination of endless interesting (and
sometimes strange) experiences, team spirit
and the sense of serving a national purpose.
Are there downsides? Yes, and it’s as well
?
to be aware of them. Moving around the
world, sometimes at short notice, isn’t easy
for families and my wife, an American-born
artist, has had to be flexible and creative with
her own career. You’ll never be more than
modestly prosperous compared to some of
your peers. But if you like challenge, change
and stimulation and want to promote British
interests in a fast changing and unstable world,
there’s nowhere like the fco.
If anyone at College would like to know
more I’d be happy to answer questions at
cdicksonr@hotmail.com.
m a r i a n n e yo u n g
ap 1987–1989
High Commissioner, British High Commission, Namibia
J
oining Wellington in the
Sixth Form was an incredibly formative experience.
I arrived fresh from doing
my o Levels in a small allgirls convent school in Surrey, where a Level
options were limited and the facilities basic.
Wellington was like another world: boys outnumbered girls ten to one? and there was
—?
a much wider range of academic subjects on
offer, a wealth of extra curricula activities, extensive sports facilities and acres of grounds
to explore. I also had my younger brother
there to look out for me? James Darch [Hl
—?
1987–1992]?—?and vice versa.
The College’s more interactive learning
environment encouraged debate and boosted
my confidence to participate more in discussions, formulate and defend my own views,
and be exposed to a much wider range of other people’s. The experience of being in such a
minority, and so conspicuous, also helped me
to develop more personal resilience, a much
tougher skin and to choose my friendships
carefully? all vital skills to survive and suc—?
ceed in the international corporate and, ultimately, diplomatic world I ended up joining.
On leaving Wellington, I spent a funfilled gap year backpacking around the world
before studying English and Spanish American