Information Technology student Charlotte Hutchinson has been rubbing shoulders with tennis stars during her time working with IBM.

She said; ‘I had the best two weeks at Wimbledon. I’ve had so much fun and met some amazing people!’

Charlotte was tasked with working on the Media Production Team providing the players on all the show courts with their match statistics and data on a memory stick within 30 minutes of the match ending.

She said; ‘It was surreal to think that some of the worlds biggest and best tennis players would be analysing their game on the USB sticks I created and built for them.’

Charlotte posed for selfies with Judy Murray and Ross Hutchins, Andy Murray’s best friend, and doubles player.

Charlotte who is a student of Information Technology with a Year in Industry at the Medway campus, is currently undertaking her placement year at IBM, the main sponsor of the event.

Hundreds of staff at IBM applied to represent the organisation at the championships and Charlotte was one of only 24 who was successful in gaining a place for the fortnight.

The rigorous selection process involved an application form, selection by an IBM manager, shortlisting by the Wimbledon team, and finally an assessment centre with group exercises and a one-on-one interview.

IBM has been a supporter of the All England Lawn Tennis Club and The Championships for 25 years. The School of Computing has a long standing relationship with IBM and many students have been placed at IBM for their paid Year in Industry and been employed by them after graduation.

As part of the University’s 50th anniversary celebrations, students, staff, alumni and members of the wider University community can become part of the very fabric of Kent by having a short message or memory engraved on a brick, and set in our new celebratory pathway by the Templeman Library.

The Crab and Winkle Path will commemorate the Canterbury and Whitstable Railway route (known locally as the Crab and Winkle Line), which ran directly below this part of the University grounds.

Set at the heart of the Canterbury campus, this new path will recognise those who have made the University what it is today.

All funds raised will help build the Kent Opportunity Fund, which supports students at Kent by funding scholarships, student projects and bursaries. Minimum donations are £50 for a two line brick, and £90 for a four line brick.

Join us, and help the next generation of Kent students to walk in your footsteps.

To find out how you can become involved: 

• Visit the Footsteps Project webpages
• Email 50years@kent.ac.uk

Take part in a video to celebrate our 50th Anniversary.

The Centre for English and World Languages is making a short video of students telling the world why they are Kent, in 50 different languages.

Would you like to be involved?

How would you finish the sentence, ‘I am Kent because…’ in all the languages you speak?

The department will be filming during three sessions:

• One session on 21 July
• Two sessions during the week starting 28 July

If you’d like to be involved, but can’t come to the filming session, you can still be included with an audio recording and/or a written sentence.

Get in touch by email with your name, the languages you speak and your completed sentence.

Please also confirm how you’d like to be included: video, audio or written sentence.

Contact: cewl@kent.ac.uk

Two Kent students will be representing the UK in the Bastille Day parade in Paris on Monday 14 July.

Ellie Clampin, an MA student at University of Kent at Paris (UKP) and Mark Harrison, a Drama and French student awarded a 50th anniversary scholarship to study at the University’s summer school in Paris in 2013, were nominated for the honour following a request by the British Ambassador to France.

This year’s Bastille Day celebrations will be used by the French to launch commemorations for the centenary of the First World War. More than 70 countries involved in the war have been invited to send military and youth representations to take part in the annual military parade along the Champs Elysées.

The British Ambassador to France, Sir Peter Ricketts, asked Dr Ana Medeiros, Director of UKP, to nominate two Kent students to be among four young people representing the UK.

He wrote: ‘As well as having a solid reputation for educational excellence, it would be particularly fitting for the University to provide students for the Bastille Day parade given the close association that Kent has with the First World War and the millions of men and women who embarked from its ports on their way to the Western Front.’

Ana de Medeiros commented: ‘I would like to thank the Embassy for honouring the University of Kent with this invitation. Ellie Clampin and Mark Harrison are delighted to play a role in this historic event and represent the University in such a meaningful manner.’

Contact: Communications@kent.ac.uk