Where BBC News developers blog about responsive design.
Opinions expressed on this blog are those of the individual contributors, and are not necessarily those of the BBC as a whole.
A year as an undergraduate web developer at the BBC
After spending a few weeks getting started, Chris, this year’s trainee web developer in the BBC Visual Journalism team, was asked to build a quiz for a story on the News site with the Headline “[How stressed are you?](http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-24756311)”. It was a tight deadline, but, working together with journalists and designers, the story went live on time and reached an audience of over a million users within 48 hours of being published. What’s more, Chris managed to get through the whole project without showing signs of very much stress at all! That done he moved on to an interactive tour of the Tardis commemorating the [50th anniversary of Dr Who](http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-24957282). These are the kinds of experiences that the undergraduate developers at the BBC take back with them when they return to finish their degrees after 12 months in the team. Working directly with journalists and designers alongside an established development team deploying production code and dealing with the pressure of a high profile launch are the sort of things that equip trainees with the skills and confidence to give their careers a jump start. As the universities themselves point out: > “…students who go out on placement typically gain a higher classification than those who don’t and are quicker to develop rewarding careers in the industry.” > > Gerard Allsop University of Brighton As well as contributing content to one of the world’s most visited websites, trainees get a year working in teams that are at the forefront of web development and receive support and training to ensure that their time at the BBC will have equipped them with new skills that are directly applicable to the industry. Although the trainees are already skilled web developers, selected from a wide number of applications from across the country, once here they get the opportunity to broaden their skills further, with in-house training days on a wide range of subjects, pair programming, regular code-reviews with senior developers and the occasional hack day. The feedback from previous trainees reflects the value they gained from the experience.
My placement with the BBC was a dream come true, the chance to work in such a well-respected and internationally recognisable company was a once in a lifetime opportunity. [ …] It was challenging and exciting to work closely with the journalists in the constantly changing environment of BBC News. The experience I got while working as an intern in the BBC was well worth the extra year of the university!
Marina Shchukina (Trainee 2012-13)
“I enjoyed my placement at the BBC, working in a large company where I felt valued and had an important role in delivering news content. I picked up a lot of skills, (new programming languages and working to very short deadlines) and was able to show friends and family my work on the BBC News site.
After completing my university course, I came back to the BBC to work on the Olympics and a local news pilot. I have regular catch-ups with my line manager where I am able to develop my career opportunities and get the support that I need.
As the BBC is a large organisation, there is flexibility to change teams to work on different projects and pick up new skills.
Sam French (Trainee 2009-2010)
The trainee scheme benefits all parties involved the teams they join are always impressed by the input of fresh ideas and enthusiasm and the students’ universities really value the opportunity to see the kind of work their students do and have used this to influence the content of the courses they run.
“Code quality, input to processes, analysis and tooling has been fresh and beneficial. They have pretty much hit the ground running and highly are productive.”
Manjit Rekhi (Tech Lead BBC World Service)
“Crucially, the student acts as an interface for experience and ideas between the BBC and the Robert Gordon University. Consequently, teaching methods and topics can be influenced by the discoveries made on the placement, and future students can be enthused and prepared to make a positive impression whilst on their own respective placements.”
Richard Glassey (Tutor, Robert Gordon University, Aberdeen)
The Future Media Team for News are hoping to expand the scheme this year to give more students the opportunity to spend a year contributing to the output of the BBC News products and building up their skills and experience.
If you know someone who’d enjoy the buzz of being part of a highly successful web development team building highly valued responsive products used by millions, or you fancy applying yourself, this year’s posts are open until 15 Feb. Please get in touch:
