Meet Paul Nino Colabuono-McDonagh, a PPE student at Royal Holloway. He co-founded CMD Careers to support state school students in Northamptonshire with career guidance and opportunities. Drawn to RHUL for its flexible PPE programme, Paul has particularly enjoyed studying Family Economics, inspired by his parents’ work in childcare. He also values the close-knit Economics community, which has enriched his university experience.

Please tell us a little bit about yourself

My name is Paul Nino Colabuono-McDonagh, I am an RHUL PPE student who has chosen to focus my optional modules on family-based Economics. During my time at RHUL I Co-Founded CMD Careers alongside my brother, providing tailored support specifically to state school students in Northamptonshire our hometown, we’ve been fortunate enough to partner with some amazing clients that provide not only discounted quality services but ambassador opportunities to employ students from our partnered educational institutes.

Why did you choose to study Economics at Royal Holloway and what have you enjoyed the most about your course?

The flexibility that RHUL offers in their PPE course made it a standout option in comparison to my other offers at the time. The ability to study 4 modules worth of Economics in my final year while blending my Politics education into my dissertation has been extremely interesting. Family Economics stood out above all my modules from a credit of the lecturer but the links to my parents’ roles.  Seeing the economic theory behind why childcare costs & benefits can have an impact on the likelihood of double income within couples is extremely interesting as both my parents worked in childcare. Of all modules, this aided the real-life application of the theory learned within the university building my critical thinking to be applied in the workplace.

Tell us about your personal experience of being part of the Economics community as a close-knit group of staff and students.

I think the community at Royal Holloway especially in the simplest form in our lectures is one of the most prominent benefits of studying here. I’ve connected very well with both staff members and students which has undoubtedly made my studies much easier than without those connections. From encouraging each other in our assessments to holding each other accountable in our group assessments, the connections you make within the lecture halls are key to your academic success.

Tell us about CMD Careers and why you took the initiative to start it.

My brother and I, both went to the nearest state school to where we lived in Kettering, Northampton. We did our best with the given resources and ended up both getting into university. He moved to Nottingham, and I moved to Surrey, we both noticed a gap in those of us at state schools and those education either privately or via grammar schools. Our expectations, base knowledge of the university, and idea of job progressions were considerably less developed than our coursemates. Luckily through hard work and assistance in expanding our professional vision through university, both of us landed graduate roles months into our final year. We simply wanted to go back to Northampton and pass on the knowledge we gained having gone through university and landing roles that use our degrees. Initially just a passion project has now luckily turned into a business operating with four differing clients.    

What are your top tips for students thinking of joining RHUL to study economics in September?

Use the resources around you affectively, find a group of students that will hold you accountable if you miss a seminar, attend the society events, go to the networking events, and most importantly keep an open mind. During your time at university you will change your goals, alter your interests, and find yourself in a different than expected place, that’s part of the fun!