Post-Production Technical Operator Apprenticeship - Level 4 - Birmingham

Contract Type: Fixed-Term Apprenticeship, Full-time for 19 months

Department: Media Operations

Location: Birmingham - The Mailbox

Salary: £22,950

COULD A BBC APPRENTICESHIP BE THE NEXT ROLE FOR YOU? Join us as an apprentice at the BBC to give yourself the opportunity to kick‑start your career in a job you'll love. We’re committed to your skills and talent development. You’ll learn on‑the‑job, developing your knowledge and skills in an area that interests you, while working towards your apprenticeship qualification with one of our learning providers.

WHY JOIN THIS SCHEME? The BBC’s broadcast services are at the heart of communities across the UK; telling stories that matter to people, on TV, radio, online and via our wider digital services. Through this apprenticeship opportunity, you could be part of the next generation of highly skilled Post Production Technical Operators.

WHY JOIN THE TEAM? This apprenticeship is an exciting entry‑level opportunity to join the BBC in towns and cities across the country; working at the front end of post‑production in the newsroom ingest hubs, galleries, studios, post‑production areas, and out on location.

YOUR KEY RESPONSIBILITIES AND IMPACT As a Post‑Production Technical Operator apprentice (PPA26), this is a brilliant opportunity to learn, grow, and contribute – you will gain experience in:

• Editing content for a variety of BBC platforms
• Digitising and managing content
• Delivering TX files to the playout provider, and keeping systems and applications accurately up to date
• Teamworking and communication skills, working as part of a varied team providing services, and talking directly to other departments across the BBC.

You’ll study for your industry recognised apprenticeship qualification, learning both on and off the job. This involves attending blocks of teaching at London South Bank University, covering best practice for media ingest, storage management, media export, secure digital despatch, support for creative colleagues in content finishing and quality assessment of finished content. Modules include:

• Video technology
• Audio technology
• Metadata and timecode
• Codecs and files
• Edit assistant operations
• Networks and storage
• Data conforming and finishing
• Quality control
• Archiving and legacy technology

YOUR SKILLS AND ELIGIBILITY We’re interested in your passion for working at the BBC and your enthusiasm for delivering world‑class content and operational excellence to our audiences. We’re not focused on your qualifications; instead, we look for potential and offer you the opportunity to apply your transferable strengths and experience to work in different ways. If you can bring some of these skills and experiences, along with transferable strengths, we’d love to hear from you and encourage you to apply:

• Passionate about media content
• Can work calmly under pressure
• Brilliant organisational skills and are great at problem‑solving
• Can manage multiple deadlines and demands on your time
• Enthusiastic self‑starter, flexible and adaptable to out‑of‑hours working

This scheme is aimed at non‑graduates. If you have a degree and you’re interested in similar roles at the BBC, we recommend applying for jobs on the BBC careers site or exploring other apprenticeship schemes.

ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA To be eligible for an apprenticeship at the BBC, you must:

• Be 18 years old or over by the time the apprenticeship begins in September 2026
• Have lived in the UK continuously for the last 3 years prior to the start of the apprenticeship
• Be legally eligible to work full‑time in the UK for the entire duration of the apprenticeship
• Not currently be enrolled in another apprenticeship programme, whether with the BBC or another organisation

To apply for this scheme, you must also:

• Not have completed or be working toward qualifications in the apprenticeship subject at level 4 or above

For candidates under the age of 19 years on 8th September 2026: To complete the apprenticeship, you must have achieved Maths and English GCSE at Grade 4/C or above or National 5 (Scotland) at C or Functional Skills Level 2 or equivalent qualification. If you have not achieved these qualifications by the start of your apprenticeship, you will be required to achieve Functional Skills Level 2 before the end of your apprenticeship when you take your end‑point assessment.

READY TO APPLY? Don’t leave yourself wondering “what if?” this could be your chance to be part of something exciting. See yourself thriving in this role? Just click ‘Apply Now’! You’ll create a candidate profile and answer a few questions – no CV or cover letter needed. If you’re eligible, we’ll guide you through the next steps of the process and what to expect. This is a fixed‑term apprenticeship – your contract lasts for the duration of the scheme. Once completed, you’ll be supported with career development, employability training, and networking opportunities to help you take your next step – whether that’s at the BBC or elsewhere in the industry. You’ll need to live within a commutable distance of where this role is based. Interested in a different location? Check out our other adverts – but please only apply to one.

The BBC recognises that some people who are applying for a BBC Apprenticeship Scheme may need to relocate to a new location for the role and this might not be possible due to your personal financial constraints. Relocation support is offered to a limited number of apprentices each year and would be considered for this position, subject to meeting the relocation support qualifying criteria. Further details will be shared with applicants during the recruitment process.

Details on the wider support available at the BBC can be found here.

At the BBC you can create and innovate in an inclusive environment while contributing to some of the world’s best‑loved content, and the BBC’s mission to inform, educate and entertain.

Life at BBC Here you will benefit from:

• Excellent career and professional development.
• Fair pay and flexible benefits including a competitive salary package, a 35‑hour working week, 25 days annual leave (26 days for BBC Studios), a range of policies to support your work/life balance, a defined pension scheme and discounted dental, health care and gym.
• A values‑based organisation where the way we do things is important as what we do.

As an Apprentice you will also receive:

• An industry recognised qualification.
• Industry‑leading training through the BBC Academy and our learning providers (this may involve travel to locations across the UK).
• A dedicated Team Manager and Scheme Specialist to help with your development.
• Training and mentoring by industry professionals.
• A bespoke BBC apprenticeship experience including apprenticeship development days and membership of the BBC Apprenticeship community.
• Employability and networking training and support to help you secure your next role.
• The opportunity to apply for financial support for relocation subject to eligibility.

We have a working environment where we value and respect every individual’s unique contribution, so all our employees feel they can belong, thrive and achieve their full potential. We want to attract the broadest range of talented people to join us. The more diverse our workforce, the better able we are to respond to and reflect our audiences in all their diversity. We welcome applications from individuals, regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, socio‑economic background, religion and/or belief.

We take inclusivity seriously and want to ensure all candidates who are disabled or have long‑term health conditions receive the support and adjustments they need. If you need to discuss adjustments or access requirements for the recruitment process, or to carry out this role, please contact us via the Early Careers Recruitment contact form and we’d be happy to discuss how we can support you through the process.