The BBC apprenticeship scheme attracted thousands of young applicants eager to take advantage of its offerings: a fully funded university education, a paid work placement, and a guaranteed job upon graduation.

Kacey Scotland was one of only 12 software engineer candidates selected. Since September 2023 she has been employed by the venerable British Broadcasting Corporation while pursuing an online degree in England with The Open University.

It’s an opportunity the 19-year-old might never have realised if her parents, Cleon and Kimiko Scotland, hadn’t moved her and her brother, Marcus, to London a decade ago.

While in high school, Kacey developed an interest in computer technology.

“I had a really good computing teacher and it kind of just went from there. He was in the industry and he taught us all this stuff when we had computing — we had coding projects, software engineering projects — and so I knew that's what I wanted to do going into university.”

Throughout her time at school, teachers encouraged Kacey and her classmates to apply for apprenticeships as a way of getting a degree, gaining work experience and earning money at the same time.

“It was a big thing,” she said. Sorting through the companies and their various apprenticeships was a feat in and of itself.

Her father found that the BBC was offering one that he thought was a good fit.

“As an apprentice on the software engineer pathway of the digital and technology solutions professional scheme, you’ll help develop and deliver new products and services, including apps and websites on BBC Sport, BBC iPlayer and bbc.co.uk,” the remit read.

Kacey submitted her application in 2022. It took nearly a year of interviews and testing before she was offered a spot.

“It’s a lot of stages. The first was the initial application and then there were a few coding challenges that I had to work through.”

Each challenge had to be completed within a set time frame, with successful submissions progressing to the next stage.

As the pool of applicants narrowed, candidates participated in a group call where they tackled a collaborative challenge. They were then paired into teams of two for an additional task before undergoing a one-on-one interview with a BBC staff member.

“I guess it was to see how we interact with people,” Kacey said.

An offer came a few weeks later.

“Tens of thousands applied, for not just software engineering, but apprenticeships in general. I got it. I was surprised. Degree apprenticeships are very competitive in the UK. A lot of people want to do them,” she said.

The job requires her to work four days a week as part of a software engineering team at the BBC.

“And then one day is my study day. That's the day I do my uni work, and I basically work on my degree. My school's paid for, and essentially you don't have any student debt at the end and you're making a salary,” said Kacey, who is on “a fast-track course” to complete a four-year degree in three years.

“It is kind of stressful, but you end up getting it done. I just have to really focus on my study days, really prepare myself and just get it done. I prioritise my work, because I really do love my job, but I have to actually do my schoolwork.”

Studying independently “makes it harder” but it’s a challenge that she has accepted with an eye on the future.

At the BBC her time is spent doing “front-end work” – the visuals and interface people see when they visit a website.

“But in my uni modules and in my work, I'm actually trying to move more towards the back end, how it all functions,” Kacey explained. “At the end I want to be a full-stack developer, which means I know the front end and the back end, basically.”

She believes that “being creative” has helped. As a child in Bermuda, she enjoyed painting and crafts and wanted to one day become a fashion designer.

“I've always had a creative vibe and I really enjoy coding and that allows me to have that freedom.”

That she has “always been kind of academic” was likely also an asset.

“I used to love my math class. I used to love computing. I loved economics — those were the three subjects I did for A-levels. I really enjoyed studying them, but I did textiles for my GCSEs and I also really enjoyed that.”

On graduation at the end of next year, a full-time job with the BBC has been promised. Although Kacey’s plan is to continue working in England, trips home are a must.

“We usually come back every summer. This is the first time we were back for Christmas in about five years,” she said.