Ö÷²¥´óÐã

‘’Always be your authentic self, it’s more hassle pretending to be someone else’’

Hello, My name is Dan and I am a 30 year old apprentice currently working at the Ö÷²¥´óÐã on the Chartered Management Degree scheme. Since my scheme began, I have worked in the Children’s department and worked in the TV team with the Media Planning department (Marketing & Audiences).

When I was told that I had been one of the 12 successful applicants that had been selected for the scheme, I was overjoyed, overwhelmed and somewhat over proud. I was so proud that I had got my ‘dream job’ and was going to work for a corporation I had always admired.

In other ways, I was so proud that I was able to represent different aspects of my life and character within this juggernaut of a British Institution. I am gay and had only come to terms with this myself a few years previously so there was a still a lot for me to learn about myself and I have strong working class roots, so I couldn’t wait to try and help represent somebody from a different socio-economic background within the Beeb as well.

If truth be told, I ashamedly thought that the Ö÷²¥´óÐã was going to lack different characters and walks of life in the inside. I thought that I would arrive on my first day within my team and it would consist of 13 heterosexual upper class white men of a certain age (not that there would have been anything wrong with that necessarily).

When I arrived for my induction and then on my first day in my placement, I couldn’t have been more wrong. The Ö÷²¥´óÐã couldn’t be more diverse if it tried! I have met so many different people from different backgrounds and it has really heightened my apprenticeship experience. Why on earth I had that initial unconscious bias about the Ö÷²¥´óÐã is beyond me. Especially when I had been a fan of how diversity and LGBTQ plus representation had been promoted on air within its programmes and content.

Not only did I learn I was very wrong in that respect and that I wouldn’t be expected to fly the flag for LGBTQ plus solo, I also realised that the Ö÷²¥´óÐã wanted every single one of their employees to be their ‘authentic self’ and true to themselves and this is what I have always tried to do throughout my life. I have never felt more comfortable in my own skin at a workplace than I have the Ö÷²¥´óÐã.

I was even more elated to hear that there are different community groups and socials that are dedicated to different diversity groups such as LGBTQ plus and that the Ö÷²¥´óÐã have allyship programmes as well.

I will always be grateful to the Ö÷²¥´óÐã and my managers for taking a chance in me and giving a gay, late 20 something year old man from a mining town with no experience in the industry his dream job and a chance to be my best authentic self.

I would urge anyone with an interest in a pursuing a business based career in the media industry to apply to one of the schemes, I have never looked back. Remember, when you do apply – be your authentic self, it’s more hassle pretending to be someone else!