ABSTRACT
General Trainee Scheme. In 1954, the BBC started its General Trainee Scheme, which was designed to recruit outstanding graduates from all disciplines to be its top managers and star producers of the future. The scheme was restricted to men until 1960, when it was opened to women as well. Between 1954 and 1969, 99 graduates were selected, of whom 7 were women. The following qualifications are required:
'Applicants should be not less than twenty-one years of age on 1st September and not yet twenty-six years on the previous 1st March (with certain exceptions) .... Candidates should be of high academic standard and must show that they possess not only marked practical initiative and imagination, but at least the capacity to develop leadership either in managerial terms or in the field of programme ideas, editorial judgment, and production techniques. The primary considerations will be the qualities of mind and character of the candidates, and their capacity to make full use of the training given .... '
