Jamaican-raised creator Natana Mundelle earns NYU marketing master’s after leaving YouTube series

Natana Mundelle, the Jamaican-raised creator who built an audience through her YouTube series Net Chat Podcast, has graduated from New York University with a master’s degree in integrated marketing after stepping away from online content to concentrate on her marketing career.

Mundelle said the milestone carried deep personal meaning, particularly as the first person in her family line to earn such an academic honour. She said the achievement also mattered at a time when many people question the value of college, adding that she wanted women in her family and online community to see what disciplined work can produce.

Although some viewers described her departure from YouTube as a pause, Mundelle said she stopped entirely because she did not want to divide her attention between content creation and marketing. She had studied accounting at the undergraduate level and said early interviews often questioned how that background connected to marketing. To make the transition, she spent six months after leaving UA doing marketing certifications and freelance projects, eventually building enough evidence of her skills to secure a marketing role. She said she now has about 13 marketing certifications.

Mundelle was already living in New York when she considered graduate programmes. She looked at Columbia, CUNY and NYU, but chose NYU because its integrated marketing programme allowed her to focus later on marketing analytics while still studying the wider field.

She credited friends in New York and supporters online, including Jamaicans who followed her journey, with helping her stay accountable through the two-year programme. She said she cried at times, worked late nights, and even completed an assignment on a beach during a trip to Puerto Rico while friends enjoyed karaoke.

Mundelle also spoke about wearing a Jamaican bandana stole with her white graduation gown. She clarified that she was not born in Jamaica but was raised there, and said Jamaica remains central to her identity. She had worn a Jamaican flag stole the previous day, but said the bandana felt more personal because it reflected tradition, creativity and her connection to Jamaican culture.