Holby City applications - how not to do it

With reference to the job description please use this section to fully demonstrate the extent to which your skills, abilities and experience meet the specific requirements of the role.

I would be well-suited to the trainee script editor role on Holby City due to a combination of my academic achievements, workplace experience, and attitude towards the challenges of the role. I have always enjoyed working with scripts, from a background of A-level theatre studies and a degree in English. In my spare time I still regularly read plays, attend the theatre two or three times a month and have an interest in how plays are written and their development from page to stage or screen. This hobby has now developed into a part-time freelance role; I work as a reader, researcher and consultant for both television production companies and freelance TV writers. This work has provided a broad base of knowledge, ranging from script reports and editorial suggestions to research for a biopic, and has enabled me to develop my analytical skills at a high level. I made the decision to freelance part-time following a work placement on Holby City in 2009, when I used annual leave from my job at a media agency to trial working for a continuing drama. During my time at Holby City I was pro-active in offering help not just to the research team where I was based but also to editors, storyliners and script secretary. I feel this gave me not just a fantastic insight into the way the show is run, but also to gain experience that I have since built on in my freelance role through editing scripts and producing reports.

I would also bring other relevant skills to the role from my job as a media Account Manager. I regularly work with clients on media strategies, which involves presenting research and ideas to them in a relevant and interesting way. This précising of information would come in useful when acting as an intermediary between writers and producers, working out ways of balancing the writer’s intentions with the long-term character development and story arcs. Working as part of a team is also integral to my job, and communication is key to keeping track of large workloads. This is a skill that would allow me to work simultaneously on different stories, as I currently manage up to fifteen clients at any one time. The way I currently adapt to different client styles would also enable me to modify the way I work with producers, and to work fluidly within the Holby team structure. I have experience working under pressure for demanding clients, so would be able to cope with the tight programme deadlines. I also deal with large budgets and can calmly negotiate rates with media owners, which I believe will allow me to present each side of a story debate articulately and rationally.

However these skills are more than a sum of their parts. I not only have a relevant education, script experience and workplace acumen but I am clearly driven, determined and enthusiastic. I used half my annual holiday allowance to complete a work placement, negotiated a way of making my account manager role into a part-time position and have made strong television writing contacts over the last eighteen months. Though I only have a brief insight into continuing drama script work I have spent the last year working to ensure this is the right decision. There is no better place to get involved in drama script editing than at the BBC, because regardless of cuts or feedback in some press the output and the quality of talent speaks for itself. In particular Holby City should be lauded for its dedication to being both entertaining and thought-provoking, continuing to raise pertinent questions about NHS funding and medical ethics. Holby also constantly revaluates the roles within its development, with moves such as the appointment of a writer-producer making the move toward a more writer led show. The role of trainee script editor is one that would allow me to utilise my talents, but to learn quickly from a strong, experienced team. I would love to work on any BBC drama, but since my work placement Holby has a little place both in my heart and on my TV viewing schedule.