At a Glance
- Tasks: Design and build data products to enhance media distribution at the BBC.
- Company: Join the BBC, a leader in media innovation and content delivery.
- Benefits: Enjoy a competitive salary, flexible working hours, and generous leave options.
- Other info: Collaborative environment with excellent career growth and professional development opportunities.
- Why this job: Make a real impact on how millions experience BBC content every day.
- Qualifications: Experience in data engineering with programming skills in Python, SQL, or Java.
The predicted salary is between 52500 - 57500 £ per year.
Job Closing Date: 31/08/2026
LOCATION: London Broadcasting House - 2 Days a week in office Hybrid
CONTRACT TYPE: 12 Month Fixed Term Contract, Full-time
PROPOSED SALARY RANGE: £52,500 - £57,500 depending on relevant skills, knowledge and experience.
PURPOSE OF THE ROLE
Media Distribution Analytics is the team that knows what your streaming experience was while watching the World Cup on iPlayer or listening to your favourite podcast on BBC Sounds. The BBC's future is dependent on delivering content to an ever-growing online audience and setting the industry standard for a world-class on-demand and live streaming experience. That means playing content back flawlessly and offering the best quality media to our audience, so that we continue to deliver news, entertainment and the UK's most prestigious live events that delight our audiences. To achieve these goals the Media Distribution Analytics team develop the data products and pipelines that ingest, measure and visualise the audience experience and allow us to take action, often in real-time, in addition to informing long term capacity requirements and performance. This is a data engineering team that processes enormous quantities of data, and works closely with device playback and the BBC's own Content Distribution Network team (BIDI), as well as third party network suppliers, to help make the online streaming experience the best it can possibly be.
WHY JOIN THE TEAM
Joining the Media Distribution Analytics team as a software engineer is a chance to work on high-impact, real-time data systems that improve how millions experience BBC content. You'll collaborate with a team of experienced engineers, build scalable data pipelines, and contribute to cutting-edge streaming analytics - a unique opportunity to shape the future of online media distribution at the BBC.
YOUR KEY RESPONSIBILITIES AND IMPACT:
- Design and build data products to understand media distribution within the BBC.
- Maintain and extend a petabyte-scale data lake and ETL process.
- Develop our real-time stream processing pipeline used for operational monitoring.
- Collaborate with stakeholders and engineers to find new requirements, ensure products are impactful and add value.
- Contribute to culture of engineering excellence.
YOUR SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE
ESSENTIAL CRITERIA:
- Production experience using a programming language commonly used in data engineering-such as Python, SQL, or Java-and openness to learning others.
- Strong understanding of the fundamentals of databases-whether relational, object storage, or data warehouses-and knowledge of the state of the art in modern datalake and data modelling tools.
- Hands-on experience with batch or streaming data pipelines and are keen to deepen your knowledge of tools like Spark, Kafka, or Flink.
- Production experience with cloud services (e.g., AWS, GCP, or Azure).
- Experience working with 3rd party data providers, expressing requirements and driving improvement in their service.
DESIRABLE:
- Experience with Infrastructure as Code and its use to deploy Data Products at scale.
- You love working with data and building data products that help shape user experiences.
- Experience in working with data visualization tools (such as Looker, Grafana, or PowerBI) to communicate insights from data.
- Enjoy collaborating in cross-functional teams and being comfortable asking questions, seeking feedback, and learning from others.
Before your start date, you may need to disclose any unspent convictions or police charges, in line with our Contracts of Employment policy. This allows us to discuss any support you may need and assess any risks. Failure to disclose may result in the withdrawal of your offer.
This job description is a written statement of the essential characteristics of the job, with its principal accountabilities, incorporating a note of the skills, knowledge and experience required for a satisfactory level of performance. This is not intended to be a complete, detailed account of all aspects of the duties involved.
Please note: If you were to be offered this role, the BBC will conduct Employment screening checks which include Reference checks; Eligibility to work checks; and if applicable to the role, Safeguarding and Adverse media/Social media checks. Any offer made is conditional on these checks being satisfactory.
For any general queries, please contact: bbchr@bbc.co.uk
REDEPLOYMENT
The BBC is committed to redeploying employees seeking suitable alternative employment within the BBC and they will be given priority consideration ahead of other applicants. Priority consideration means for those employees seeking redeployment their application will be considered alongside anyone else at risk of redundancy, prior to any individuals being considered who are not at risk.
INFORMATION AT A GLANCE
This is your BBC 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.
Find out more about the BBC Life at BBC Here you will benefit from:
- Fair pay and flexible benefits including a competitive salary package, a flexible 35-hour working week, 25 days annual leave with the option to buy an extra 5 days, a defined pension scheme and discounted dental, health care and gym.
- Excellent career and professional development.
- Support in your working life, including flexible working which you can discuss with us at any point during the application, selection or offer.
- A values-based organisation where the way we do things is important as what we do.
Benefits may vary if you are joining on an FTC basis or on an orchestra conditions contract. Learn more about life at the BBC and our values in our candidate pack.
CANDIDATE PACK
You belong We have a working environment where we value and respect every individual's unique contribution, so all our employees feel that 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.
Find out more about diversity, inclusion and belonging in our strategy below.
DIVERSITY, INCLUSION & BELONGING STRATEGY
DISABILITY CONFIDENT
We are a disability confident employer. If you need to discuss adjustments or access requirements for the interview process, or to carry out this role, please contact us via email and we'd be happy to discuss: reasonable.adjustments@bbc.co.uk
Software Engineer employer: BBC UK
At BBC, we pride ourselves on being an excellent employer that fosters a collaborative and inclusive work culture. With flexible working arrangements and opportunities for professional growth, our Senior Accountant role not only allows you to lead a dynamic team but also offers the chance to make a meaningful impact across our finance operations. Join us in Cardiff and be part of an organisation that values innovation and employee development.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Software Engineer
✨Join Local Tech Meetups
Get out there and mingle with fellow developers by joining local tech meetups. It’s a fantastic way to meet people who might be working at BBC UK or know someone who does. Plus, you can pick up some trendy tech skills and trends while you're at it!
✨Contribute to Open Source Projects
Show off your coding chops by jumping into open-source projects. Not only does this give you practical experience, but it also gets you noticed in the dev community. You'll create a killer portfolio that speaks volumes about your skills to BBC UK.
✨Tap into Online Developer Communities
Don’t underestimate the power of online developer communities like GitHub, Stack Overflow, and even Reddit. Participate in discussions, share your projects, and build your visibility. We can often find opportunities through these channels that can lead to a full-time gig at companies like BBC UK.
✨Explore Job Boards Specifically for Tech Roles
Keep your eyes peeled on job boards that focus on tech roles. Sites like TechCareers or Stack Overflow Jobs can often have listings for companies like BBC UK that might not show up on broader job sites. Make it a habit to check these regularly, and don’t hesitate to apply directly through our website!
We think you need these skills to ace Software Engineer
Some tips for your application 🫡
Show off your coding skills:When applying for a software engineering role, it's super important to showcase your coding skills. Make sure your CV includes your tech stack, any relevant programming languages you’re comfortable with, and examples of projects you've worked on. If you have a GitHub profile, link it up! We love to see code in action.
Tailor your portfolio:For a full-time role, we’d expect to see some solid examples of your work in your portfolio. Make sure to include at least two or three projects that highlight your problem-solving skills and your ability to work with different technologies. Focus on the projects that are most relevant to the position at BBC UK.
Craft a killer cover letter:Your cover letter is your chance to stand out—make it personal! Explain why you want to work at BBC UK and how your skills align with the role. Show us your passion for software development. We dig enthusiastic candidates who understand the value of collaboration and continuous learning!
Be clear and concise:When it comes to writing your CV and cover letter, clarity is key. Avoid jargon that could confuse us and stick to simple, direct language. Highlight your achievements with quantifiable results where possible, and keep everything easy to read. A well-organised application goes a long way!
How to prepare for a job interview at BBC UK
✨Brush Up on Your Coding Skills
For a full-time software engineering role, it's crucial that we stay sharp with our coding abilities. Expect technical questions that might involve solving problems on the spot or discussing algorithms. Practise on platforms like LeetCode or HackerRank to get comfortable with the types of questions that often come up.
✨Know Your Tools and Frameworks
Make sure we’re well-acquainted with the tools and technologies listed in the job description. Familiarise ourselves with any specific frameworks or programming languages mentioned. If BBC UK uses React or Node.js, for instance, be ready to discuss how we’ve used them in previous projects or coursework.
✨Showcase Your Projects
Bring along a portfolio that highlights our best work. This could be code samples, GitHub repositories, or any side projects we’ve built. Make sure we can talk through our thought process for each project, especially the challenges we faced and how we solved them—this shows our problem-solving skills in action.
✨Prepare for Behavioural Questions
While technical skills are key, full-time positions also require cultural fit. Be ready to discuss our previous experiences and how we handle teamwork, conflict, and deadlines. Brush up on the STAR method—Situation, Task, Action, Result—to clearly articulate our past experiences when discussing how we've contributed to a team.
