BBC Mags bursary to help out ethnic groups

BBC Magazines is to launch an internship for students with experience of working with ethnic minorities.

The Connectivity Award will encourage students with experience of working with specific ethnic groups to pursue a career in magazine journalism.

BBC Magazines said the move was "an effort to help [its] titles develop richer editorial content, relevant to all parts of the UK's diverse communities".

Nicholas Brett, editor in chief of BBC Magazines, said: "Research has demonstrated that, on the whole, the majority of ethnic groups do not engage with our magazines and I desperately wanted to address this issue sooner rather than later.

"This award not only offers the opportunity for a student with experience of these groups to gain a wonderful foothold in magazine journalism, but it also allows us to reach out to underserved readers and really understand how they live their lives and what their current and future needs are."

The Connectivity Award will be open to graduates taking any postgraduate journalism course accredited by the Periodicals Training Council in 2007/08 who can demonstrate a commitment to connecting with, and understanding the needs of minority groups such as Black-Caribbean, Black- African, Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Chinese.

The winning student will receive editorial training from BBC Magazines to the value of £5,000, including payment of their postgraduate course fees and a six-month paid placement. The BBC already runs a postgraduate internship, which will continue to run alongside the new initiative.