Holby placement advice

I recently recieved a charming email from a gent who spotted my profile on the Feedback Exchange, noted that I did a placement on Holby City and requested my advice. Well, for a start I was just flattered to be considered a 'success' in any aspect of script work, especially bearing in mind my current knack for eliciting rejections at every turn. So I thought I'd post my advice here too.

He said:
I hope you don't mind me emailing you, I came across your details on 'The Feedback Exchange' and noticed that you did the BBC's Holby City Script Department work placement.

I'm currently studying Scriptwriting for Film & Television at Bournemouth University and looking for work experience myself. I'm hoping to go into script editing so I'd give anything to land that particular placement and I've applied 3 times but predictably with no success (always the way!). I know the competition must be very strong but clearly you did something right in your application so I wondered if you might be able to tell me a little about what you said in yours, particularly if you ever told by anyone on the show what it was they liked about it? Any tips I could get that might improve my chances of being chosen would be hugely appreciated!

Sorry for the bizarre request, I know you put your details up for the feedback exchange service but I don't know anyone that's done that placement (or landed ANY BBC placement for that matter!) so in my eyes you're pretty special! I'd be happy to read anything of yours in exchange for any info and insight you could give me, although I can't tell you how useful you'd find my critique.

Thanks for your time, hope to hear from you soon.

And my response was:
Hope all’s well with you. Firstly SO sorry for being completely rubbish. I kept remembering your email but didn’t want to dash off a quick reply. But, here goes. Of course I don’t mind you emailing – I figure the Feedback Exchange should be for any kind of script-related advice.

I did the placement last October, and was fortunate enough to be accepted on my first application. Seeing your email I’m surprised, as you seem to have more directly relevant experience than I did at the time. However I think they were impressed by my related experience, rather than direct script knowledge. I did an English degree, specialising in 20th century American drama, so talked a lot about script reading and analysis in my application. I also have lots of amateur theatre experience, though again not directly related to television. I think showing you’re diverse would help. Out of the four researchers there when I did my placement they all had very different backgrounds (one used to be a director on Eastenders but I think wanted to get into script writing, one was a producer on Blue Peter and another came from working on radio plays in BBC Manchester).

I assume the application questions are similar each time, so I’ll go through each of them in turn. I’m not saying these are definitive tips, but as I don’t know much about your strengths and experiences, bar your obviously relevant academic background, I’ll just go by what worked for me.

Q1) Why are you interested in this particular placement and how you think it will benefit you:
I flattered them, did some research on the show so it’s obvious I knew my stuff. Give a little of exactly why you want the placement, what makes it so right for you rather than any of the other applicants. In addition make sure you really sell yourself in: do you do any extra curricular activities that relate? What made you realise you wanted to work with drama scripts? Are you involved in the Feedback Exchange? Do you keep a blog (if so, you should follow mine on http://penenvyandotherstories.blogspot.com/ A bit of shameless self promotion there!)

Q2) In relation to the criteria, please provide details of any interests or activities which support your application for this placement:
Go through each of the competencies and give an example of why you fit the bill. It might feel a bit prescriptive, but I’ve been advised that often people read job applications very fast and actually do just sit there with a checklist and tick of all the core criteria.

Q3) (Holby Storylines) What do you think have been the most and least successful sorylines of the last 12 months, and why?
This was my favourite question – I definitely let loose a bit on this, and slated one of the storylines, however also added in a suggestion of how to make it better. I’m sure you’re an avid viewer of Holby already in preparation for this, but I watched all the back episodes I could. Plus the Holby and BBC websites have really detailed back stories of all the characters for the last few years if you need any gaps filled in. There’s also some chat rooms which can give you an idea of what the viewers are thinking, and what does and doesn’t work for them. Basically give your opinion and back it up – I’m sure this is the sort of feedback you must work on quite regularly.
I really hope that’s of some help. And I guess if all else fails just let them know you’ve applied three times before. God loves a trier!! I know it probably doesn’t help with your frustrations, but I have a friend who’s now a successful nature show producer for the BBC who never managed to get a placement there. And conversely I got my placement first time but can’t seem to get a job at the beeb for love nor money!
Good luck, and let me know how you get on.
Hannah

I hope he gets it. And with any luck maybe I'll have some good news with my Holby application and will be on the other side of the placement applications for a change.