Alfred (Freddie) Mallinson

Freddie, BA (Hons) Politics & IR graduate (2021), is Assistant Director of Programs and Research at Georgetown University, where he manages the "Bridging the Gap" program to connect academics and policymakers.

His career path was shaped by his year abroad at Virginia Tech and an internship in Washington DC, facilitated by Kent’s program. Freddie credits Kent’s Model UN Society and diverse student body for preparing him for a career in international relations. 

Tell us about your career path since graduation.

My post-grad journey was shaped heavily by my opportunities at Kent. My year abroad was at Virginia Tech, a massive university in southwest Virginia — Appalachian country. Virginia Tech had an internship program that allowed students to work the Spring term in a Congressman or Senator's office. I got into the program and spent Spring 2020 in Washington DC. I loved the city and wanted to come back. In 2021 during my fourth and final year at Kent, I applied to Georgetown University for a Master's in IR. I got a decent scholarship, and finished my MA in 2023. I got a job at a university research institute — the Institute for the Study of Diplomacy, as our organization's main junior researcher and editor.

What does a typical work day look like for you?

Our think tank is small, but my job covers a lot of projects. We work on a grant-funded program called "Bridging the Gap", designed to bridge the gap between academics and policymakers in International Relations (IR) to improve the quality of foreign policy in the US and around the world. Every day is different. We edit long-form academic "case studies" that seek to tell stories of foreign policy through practitioners' eyes; we host an online magazine on Medium that posts foreign policy content regularly; we host a series of "working groups" (basically, a lot of subject matter experts in a room together) to write up policy recommendations on a pressing international issue; and we host a weekly podcast on international news. I also help out with general office business, and campus events, etc. There is a lot of grunt work as well — website maintenance, document formatting, that sort of stuff. All that is a lot to juggle, but it keeps things fresh and it keeps me learning. I get to learn just as much now as when I was a student — maybe even more — which is my favourite thing about working in this space.

Can you share a professional highlight from your career so far?

My favourite moment was when we hosted the foreign minister of Montenegro for a talk — he was visiting Washington for diplomatic meetings and stopped off on campus too. Montenegro had just elected a new pro-Europe party, a rare thing in that part of Europe, and the country is pushing hard for EU membership even as Russia is growling to the East, and threatening other countries like Moldova, Georgia, and (of course) Ukraine. I chaperoned the foreign minister and his party around campus, and wrote an article for our blog afterwards talking about the issues the foreign minister discussed, and how Montenegro is fairing as it tries to enter the EU. The Montenegrin embassy and the foreign minister himself shared it on social media. It's small, and isn't exactly going to change the world overnight, but it was a great example of how our field can help facilitate conversations. It also raised the profile in Washington of a small country that doesn't normally get enough attention.

How did your time at Kent help you achieve your current career?

The year abroad was key. You learn such an unbelievable amount just by studying in another country. That is especially important in IR where history and the style of education make so much difference to how countries interact with each other on issues that really matter. Obviously, that's even more true for studying in the States, a country that has so much influence over the rest of the world. Kent's Model UN Society also helped me hugely. It's a very international space, so you learn so much about other places that you could never learn from a textbook. 

As for modules, I tried to take at least one on every major region/conflict in the world. It's fine not to know what exactly you want to study — I definitely didn't — but keeping your options open while getting a full understanding of the world is a safe bet. It worked for me. A lot of my job requires generalized knowledge, like editing an academic case study written by a subject expert. I have to know enough about the subject to critique it. I wouldn't be able to do that without the solid foundation I got from taking a broad range of modules within the school of Politics &International Relations (P&IR).

What advice would you give to our current/prospective students who are looking to get into the same line of work?

Keep your options open, and get involved as much as you can while at uni. Learn both the academic knowledge and the soft and hard skills. Kent is great at preparing you for life and work afterwards, as long as you make use of the opportunities the university gives you. Learn from your classmates too. Kent is an amazingly diverse campus, and this line of work is about understanding other cultures and histories. Make use of that. Where else are you going to be in a room with people from 3, 5, maybe 10 different countries? Learn about the experiences of people who are different from you.

Did you get involved in any extracurricular activities as a student?

I'll mention Model United Nations again. I helped run the society in my 2nd year as the main competition organizer. I had to manage budgets up to ten thousand pounds on behalf of my fellow students. I had to train freshers in public speaking and debating, and had to supervise teams of 10+ students flying across Europe and the world to different competitions. Not many people graduate having done all those things with all the responsibilities they entail. Doing activities like these will make you stand out, no matter if you're applying for a Master's or a job.

Do you have a favourite memory from your time at Kent?

This was probably my American politics module with Andy Wroe. He wrote a book in 2019 called, "The ordinary presidency of Donald Trump", arguing that Trump was pretty much a normal republican US president, plus lots of bluster and empty rhetoric. I wrote my final essay heavily critiquing Andy's book, and he loved it. We had a long chat in his office about it after my essay came back, which was probably the memory that sticks out the most.I had a similar experience with most professors at Kent. If you are keen and clearly invested in the material, you get to have real debates with real scholars. Your profs will give you all the time they have — as long as you take it seriously. Another favourite memory was traveling with my Model UN friends to Madrid to compete in Harvard's worldwide debating competition. 5 days of debating with parties every night.

Is there anything you would do differently if you could repeat your time at Kent?

I would have done more readings so I could get more out of seminars. Not many people actually do the readings, and if you do them, your professor will immediately mark you out as someone to invest time and energy in. I was a little lazy here, and I wish I could have made connections with more professors by taking the workload more seriously.

Are you still in touch with other Kent alumni or academics?

Yes. We have a "University of Kent in North America" organization that I am on the board of, along with a close friend from Becket Court who also lives in the US now. We seek to provide resources and guidance for students going to or from Kent and the US. Given how much Kent gave me, it feels great to give back however I can.

What are your future ambitions?

I would love to keep working in the foreign policy-academic space, either in the US where I am now, or in London. I would love to work for government one day, but I like the freedom I have in academic/research.