Samuel McKechnie

Level 3 Broadcast Production Assistant Apprenticeship

by

Working with a team of professionals to assist in the production and delivery of TV/Radio shows. Sound exciting? This level 3 Broadcast Production Assistant role could be the start of your new career!

The role and salary for a level 3 Broadcast Production Assistant Apprentice

The Broadcast Production Assistant provides key support to both editorial and technical colleagues which ensures the smooth delivery of content for TV and radio productions. These productions can be anything from factual to comedy and everything in between. Candidates will work as part of a production team and need to be both adaptable and willing to learn on the job. Broadcast production assistants may plan projects, events, manage guests, obtain equipment and importantly, manage resources (including finance). They may also be involved in operational areas such as camera, lighting, sound, and editing. For commercial sectors, it may be their job to develop branding, commercials and work closely with marketers.

The average Broadcast Production Assistant salary in the UK is between £15k – £18k but that can change very quickly as you start progressing through your career and into new positions. The Broadcast Production Assistant apprenticeship is a window of opportunity into a wide range of production roles within the commercial environment, a career choice that offers room for movement within the entertainment industry.

Pathways and requirements

Broadcast Production Assistants can progress into TV or radio creative, production management, or editing roles, such as Researcher, Production Co-ordinator, or Editorial Co-ordinator.

Regarding qualifications, apprentices without level 2 English and Maths will need to achieve this level prior to taking the end-point assessment. Employers will often set their own criteria for entry, but this can include 5 or more GCSE’s A* – C.

Broadcast Production Assistant: Core skills and knowledge

The apprentice’s job role will consist of responsibilities that will fulfill a range of competencies. These include:

Production Planning – skills

  • How new productions in TV/Radio are commissioned
  • The differences between genre and the type of production
  • TV/Radio production being developed
  • How to use tools and techniques to research ideas and concepts for a TV/Radio production
  • How to work within a budget allocation for a production
  • The legislation that may apply to cast and crew on productions including health and safety, licenses, working time directive

Knowledge

  • Follow the commissioning process for TV/Radio productions
  • Interpret the production brief, research and identify the audience for the TV/Radio production
  • Research and develop creative ideas and concepts for a TV/Radio production
  • Present persuasive ideas, pitches and proposals for TV/Radio productions
  • Identify and assist with sourcing resources for a TV/Radio production including equipment, crew, budget and existing media assets

Production Development – skills

  • Use tools to research the methods and tools that underpin the development of creative thinking
  • The different styles of writing that can be used according to the genre of production
  • How to establish the appropriate tone of voice for a TV/Radio production
  • The end-to-end production workflow process, the key stages, and own role within this
  • The regulatory and legal requirements when using media assets such as copyright, intellectual property rights etc
  • How to gather data to evaluate the success of a TV/Radio production    against its objectives

Knowledge

  • Work to a commission to develop content for TV/Radio
  • Write a brief for a production, or storyboard and outline script their ideas
  • Operate effectively within the production workflow
  • Obtain media assets for use within the TV/Radio production
  • Apply copyright/intellectual property rights to media assets
  • Clear copyright for productions
  • Develop and maintain positive working relationships when in production
  • Use lessons learned to evaluate the success of the TV / Radio production and identify areas for improvement for future productions

Industry Awareness – skills

  • How to manage and market your own skills and services
  • The structure and culture of broadcasters, creative media organisations and the wider creative industry.
  • Commercial pressures, production deadlines and organisational working practices
  • The safe use of equipment on TV/Radio Productions

Knowledge

  • Develop, maintain and use professional networks
  • Develop and maintain own competence and knowledge in specialist broadcast areas
  • Follow health & safety procedures when on a production
  • Identify and minimise hazards and risks in the workplace

Content Creation – skills

  • The principles of grammar, punctuation and spelling
  • How to capture video, pictures, graphics and sound from various formats, in preparation for non-linear editing
  • How to prepare for and conduct interviews
  • How to identify media assets from various sources
  • How to manipulate media assets

Knowledge

  • Write and edit scripts and cues for use in TV/Radio productions
  • Capture images and record audio on location or in a studio
  • Maintain records of material produced and its location using production logs
  • Prepare media assets for use in TV / Radio productions
  • Assist with co-ordinating productions end to end

Specialist skills and knowledge

The apprentice must demonstrate competence in three of the below areas. These have been tailored specifically to the needs of the role and the broadcast employer.

Editing and post-production – skills

  • How the editing approach affects the production of the final content
  • How to securely store and access media assets
  • How to archive, conserve and preserve media assets

Knowledge

  • Assist with importing and editing of media content from files/drives (ingest)
  • Use industry standard packages to carry out basic edits and post produce media content
  • Edit, process and mix audio assets
  • Manage and store media assets correctly

Technical support – skills

  • The procedures for obtaining technical equipment
  • How to set up and de-rig technical equipment

Knowledge

  • Obtain, prepare, and return technical equipment for use on TV / Radio productions
  • Operate technical equipment in the studio and on location

Production co-ordination – skills

  • The procedures to follow when sourcing locations, catering, accommodation and transport for productions
  • The processes to follow when monitoring resources and budgets on productions

Knowledge

  • Identify and source locations, catering accommodation and transport, fora TV/ Radio production
  • Monitor the production budget and resources
  • Complete and maintain production documentation

Live content creation – skills

  • How to successfully produce and broadcast live events for TV/Radio
  • How to work with transmission and broadcast engineering service partners for live broadcast

Knowledge

  • Assist with the production of live programming for TV/Radio
  • Work with transmission and broadcast engineering services to broadcast live content

Commercial – skills

  • Awareness of branding guidelines
  • The importance of branding for TV and Radio
  • How to develop and produce trails, promos and commercials

Knowledge

  • Support the production of branding, promos, trails and commercials for TV / Radio
  • Support the end-to-end production of sponsored/branded content

Broadcast Production Assistant behaviours and exams

To complete the Broadcast Production Assistant qualification, you must demonstrate the following behaviours and required knowledge to work within a wide range of production disciplines, in a safe and professional manner.

 

  • A passion for developing and producing content for TV/Radio productions
  • An ability to work effectively both individually and collaboratively as part of a production team
  • An ability to think critically and creatively
  • Working in an ethical and sustainable manner
  • A strong work ethic and commitment in order to meet the standards required
  • Recognition of and compliance with equality and diversity in the workplace

In order to complete the qualification successfully you must demonstrate your skills and knowledge gained throughout the apprenticeship. The apprentice will be required to complete an EPA (End-point assessment) to show they are fully competent in their occupational job role. The EPA is made up of three assessment tools:

  • Knowledge Test
  • Practical Test
  • Structured Interview

Further detail on the End-point assessment can be found in the Broadcast Production Assessment Assistant document here: https://www.instituteforapprenticeships.org/media/1158/broadcast_production_assistant.pdf

Conclusion

Broadcast production assistants are in demand because without them no new media
content would ever find its way onto our screens. They are equally happy on set where the
filming happens, presenting ideas to commissioning editors, or at their desks mastering
technology around end-to-end content creation. If you are reading this blog you will have
picked up on the really vital skills for success in this career: You must be able to write well
and think creatively, be capable of managing a wide range of people and resources to
make a production run smoothly, follow processes, present ideas, and develop a
commercial mindset to predict, monitor and evaluate success of new productions. You
need to be comfortable around using new technology, and adept at relationship skills – as
you progress you will be pulling people together to work as one team with an agreed vision
and purpose. If you want to start thinking like a Broadcast Production professional, start by
paying attention to anything you watch on a screen and ask yourself a few simple
questions: Why will people want to watch this, who are they, when will they watch and on
which channels?

Click here for the latest apprenticeship news and articles.

Take another look around our website, check out our social platforms, and sign up to our weekly newsletter for updates on your favourite apprenticeship opportunities.

Level 3 Digital Marketing Apprenticeship

by

Working with your team to define, design, build and implement your campaigns across a range of digital platforms. Sound good to you? If so, then read on and find out how the level 3 Digital Marketing apprenticeship could help kick start your new career!

Profile, job roles and entry requirements for the level 3 Digital Marketing Apprenticeship

The Digital Marketing Apprenticeship provides the opportunity for an apprentice to learn the skills required to build and implement digital campaigns across a variety of online and social media platforms; to drive customer acquisition, customer engagement and customer retention. Here you’ll work as a team but also be responsible for your own elements of an overall marketing plan.

This can lead to a number of great marketing roles such as: Digital Marketing Executive, Digital Marketing Co-ordinator, Social Media Executive. Digital Marketing apprenticeship salaries in the UK average a start at £16k but with lots of room for progression in the years to follow. This apprenticeship provides an excellent opportunity for you to begin your career in digital with a basis in effective, practical experience.

Employers will set their own criteria for entry, but this can include:

  • 5 or more GCSE’s A* – C
  • Level 2 in English and Mathematics, or the equivalent in functional skills.

Digital Marketing: Key technical competencies

  • Written communcation: Skills for a range of audiences with regard to the sensitivity of communcation
  • Research: Able to analyse and contribute with regard to the digital environment to nform short and long-term strategies
  • Technologies: Recommending effective and appropriate solutions using a vareity of technologies and tools to meet marketing objectives
  • Data: reviews, monitors and analyses online activity and provides recommendations and insights to others
  • Customer service: responds efficiently to enquiries using online and social media platforms
  • Problem solving: applies structured techniques to problem solving, and analyses problems and resolves issues across a variety of digital platforms
  • Analysis: understands and creates basic analytical dashboards using appropriate digital tools
  • Implementation: builds and implements digital campaigns across a variety of digital media platforms
  • Applies at least two of the following specialist areas: search marketing, search engine optimisation, e mail marketing, web analytics and metrics, mobile apps and Pay-Per-Click
  • Uses digital tools effectively
  • Digital analytics: measures and evaluates the success of digital marketing activities

Interprets and follows:

  • latest developments in digital media technologies and trends
  • marketing briefs and plans
  • company defined ‘customer standards’ or industry good practice for marketing
  • company, team or client approaches to continuous integration
  • Can operate effectively in their own business’s, their customers’ and the industry’s environments

Core technical knowledge and understanding

  • Understands the principles of coding
  • Understands and can apply basic marketing principles
  • Understands and can apply the customer lifecycle
  • Understands the role of customer relationship marketing
  • Understands how teams work effectively to deliver digital marketing campaigns and can deliver accordingly
  • Understands the main components of Digital and Social Media Strategies
  • Understands the principles of all of the following specialist areas: search marketing, search engine optimisation, e mail marketing, web analytics and metrics, mobile apps and Pay-Per-Click and understands how these can work together
  • Understands the similarities and differences, including positives and negatives, of all the major digital and social media platforms
  • Understands and responds to the business environment and business issues related to digital marketing and customer needs
  • Understands and follows digital etiquette
  • Understands how digital platforms integrate in to the working environment
  • Understands and follows the required security levels necessary to protect data across digital and social media platforms
The Secret to Being a Successful Digital Marketer

Skills, attitudes and behaviours

  • Logical and creative thinking skills
  • Analytical and problem-solving skills
  • Ability to work independently and to take responsibility
  • Can use own initiative
  • A thorough and organised approach
  • Ability to work with a range of internal and external people
  • Ability to communicate effectively in a variety of situations
  • Maintain productive, professional and secure working environment

Qualifications

New apprentices:

Apprentices who start their studies after the 1st June 2020 will use the qualifications listed in Table 2 below.

Apprentices must achieve one internationally recognised vendor or professional qualification, from the right-hand column in the table below. This then exempts one of the Ofqual-regulated knowledge modules, as shown in the left-hand column.

Table: The knowledge modules are summarised below, and further details are available in the occupational brief available from https://www.nsar.co.uk/digital-eqa/digital-apprenticeship-standards/

Knowledge Modules Vendor or Professional Qualifications
Knowledge Module 1: Principles of Coding (for level 3 Digital Marketer Apprenticeship) MTA HTML 5 Application Development Fundamentals (98-375) CIW – Site Development Associate
Knowledge Module 2: Marketing Principles (for Level 3 Digital Marketer)   Google Squared CIM Level 3 Award in Digital Fundamentals Dot Native CIW – Internet Business Associate
Knowledge Module 3: Digital Marketing Business Principle (for level 3 Digital Marketer Apprenticeship) Google Analytics IQ CIM Level 3 Award in Digital Fundamentals CIW – Data Analytics CIW – Social Media Strategist Dot Native Google Squared

Individual employers will select which vendor or professional qualification the apprentice should take.

To note: if apprentices started their studies prior to the 1st June 2020 but have not yet selected or started their mandated qualifications, then they will select their qualifications from Table 2.

Further detail on the End-point assessment can be found in the Digital Marketer Assessment document here: https://www.instituteforapprenticeships.org/media/1125/digital_marketer.pdf

Conclusion

Digital marketers have a great future ahead of them, playing a central role in defining the way people buy, sell and consume goods and services. In this sense, they are key to a vibrant economy that can embrace opportunity through technology and a deep knowledge of what people want next. If you are reading this blog you will have identified some key skills vital to success in your career: Teamwork, problem solving, meeting client deadlines flexibility, logic, creativity, and the ability to use your own initiative. In addition, you need to develop a mindset of continuous learning and a genuine curiosity about the digital marketplace. To start thinking in the right way, every time you do a Google search and an advert pops up, ask yourself a few simple questions: How did this advert suddenly appear, what makes it appealing, and why did the digital marketer choose this particular combination of words and images to make me click?

That concludes this page on the level 3 Digital Marketing Apprentice qualification. Take time to ask yourself: Is this a role I could see myself in? Did I find it interesting? Do I think I could bring something to this position?

Click here for the latest apprenticeship news and articles.

Take another look around our website, check out our social platforms and sign up to our weekly newsletter for updates on new apprenticeship opportunities.