The University of Westminster’s School of Media and Communications has signed to be the exclusive London partner of The TV Foundation. This partnership provides students and alumni with free-to-access career development opportunities and initiatives at the Edinburgh TV Festival.
The TV Foundation is the charity behind the Edinburgh TV Festival and charitable work to positively shape the TV industry to make it open to all, a place where new perspectives, ideas and stories thrive. It currently has four focus areas led by the Impact Unit team: new talent, career development, climate storytelling and class and social equality. Its career development programmes and events have supported over 4000 individuals since 1991. The Edinburgh TV Festival funds these initiatives and keeps them free to access to improve inclusion in the TV industry.
This partnership starts in January 2025 and includes participation in its career development programme, The Network, and the Edinburgh TV Festival for 2025, 2026 and 2027. It provides several benefits to Westminster students. Firstly, it provides final year students with opportunities for new talent programmes via access to briefing by the Impact Unit to talk about The Network and other relevant programmes such as the New Writers Collective. It also provides the students with fast-track interviews for The Network. The TV Foundation will also open the door to the wider TV Industry by making introductions to key industry partners throughout the year, inviting students to relevant year-round events such as Ignite: Climate Content Summit, Amplify x New Voice Awards and AHTV: Engaging Academia in TV, as well as allowing eligible alumni to be fast-tracked to the interview stage of their career development programmes for industry professionals.
The partnership also includes five passes to the festival for University colleagues. Colleagues will be invited to The TV Foundation Welcome Party during the festival, where Westminster will be featured as a Major Supporter with regional exclusivity as a supporter of The Network.
Dr Doug Specht, Head of the School of Media and Communications, said: “We are delighted that the School has formed this relationship, and we are looking forward to working together for the benefit of the TV industry and our students.”
The partnership was negotiated by Professor Lucy Brown, Assistant Head of School, who added: “This partnership is a great coup for Westminster, cementing our reputation as a leading provider of television and media production courses and creating valuable opportunities for our students to gain industry experience from high profile TV executives and creatives from around the globe.”
Gemma Bradshaw, Impact Director from The TV Foundation, commented: “We're delighted to have this new partnership with the University of Westminster. It's an important collaboration - a chance to open doors into the TV industry for their students, while also bringing the University's knowledge and learning to programmes across the TV Foundation's Impact Unit.”
Westminster’s partnership with The TV Foundation directly contributes to the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 17: Partnerships for the Goals. Since 2019, the University of Westminster has used the SDGs holistically to frame strategic decisions to help students and colleagues fulfil their potential and contribute to a more sustainable, equitable and healthier society.
Find out more about the School of Media and Communications at Westminster.
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