RTS Awards 37 Bursaries for 2026 TV and Digital Media Students

Two schemes, 25 institutions

The Royal Television Society’s 2026 bursaries will support 37 undergraduates across the UK, extending a programme whose alumni outcomes point to a clear industry role: 80% of its 450 past scholars have found work in television and related fields. That figure gives the scheme a tangible measure of reach, though it doesn’t show how quickly graduates found work, what roles they entered, or how their careers developed. It does suggest the bursaries are intended to do more than recognise academic promise: they’re designed to help students make the transition into a sector where access to professional contacts and early experience can matter.

The RTS selected 27 students for its TV Production and Journalism Bursary and 10 for the Digital Innovation Bursary. The recipients attend 25 institutions across the UK’s nations and regions, giving the programme a presence beyond a small group of specialist centres. TV Production and Journalism scholar Oliver May also received the Steve Hewlett Scholarship, awarded annually to an aspiring journalist. The additional award signals a specific commitment to journalism within a programme that also covers production and digital work.

The Digital Innovation scheme has widened its remit to include students aiming for careers in digital content production and distribution. That change reflects how television work increasingly involves making and delivering content across different formats and channels, rather than focusing only on traditional broadcast roles. The Andy Taylor Foundation joined its panel as part of that expansion. Broadcaster 5 became a scheme sponsor in 2025; Banijay UK, Apple TV, the Steve Hewlett Memorial Fund, Hartswood Films and STV are returning partners. The range of organisations involved gives the programme links across parts of the industry, although the announcement doesn’t specify what each partner contributes.

Support beyond tuition

Each scholar receives £1,500 a year and a personal industry mentor. The annual payment can help with the costs of studying and starting a career, while a mentor may offer perspective on how work is found and how different roles operate. Those are distinct forms of support: one addresses immediate expenses, the other helps students understand an industry that can be difficult to navigate from outside. A bursary can’t guarantee a job, but pairing money with access to experienced people gives recipients more than a cheque.

After graduation, scholars also gain free access to the RTS’s CPD-accredited Mini MBA, an online course designed to address business and leadership skills gaps in television. Its inclusion points to a view of career preparation that extends beyond craft skills. Production and media careers can involve budgets, teams and organisational decisions, so business knowledge may be useful even for people whose first goal is editorial or creative work. The course’s stated purpose is to address a skills gap; the announcement doesn’t say how that gap is measured or how many alumni take the course.

Since the bursaries began in 2014, the RTS has invested more than £1 million in them. Funding and in-kind contributions from partners and individuals also help provide mentoring, networking, internships and other work experience. The figures suggest the programme’s reach extends well beyond financial assistance, connecting students with people and opportunities across the sector. That wider offer matters because financial help alone can ease pressure without opening doors. Conversely, introductions and experience are harder to make use of if students don’t have the time or money to pursue them.

This is more significant than it looks: access to early career opportunities can shape who gets to build a track record in television. The combination of a recurring payment, mentoring and work experience addresses several parts of that problem at once. Still, the published outcomes are broad. The 80% employment figure is encouraging, but it doesn’t establish that the bursaries caused those outcomes or show whether recipients entered the kinds of jobs they hoped to pursue.

Leadership change at the RTS

Anouk Berendsen, Banijay UK’s incoming Director of Talent, will become Chair of the RTS Education Committee in the New Year. She succeeds Graeme Thompson, who held the role for 14 years and oversaw the bursary schemes, masterclasses and student awards. A change in committee chair is an opportunity to set priorities, though the announcement doesn’t describe any planned changes to the existing programmes. Thompson’s long tenure means Berendsen takes over a committee with established work across several stages of education and early career development.

RTS CEO Sophie Jones said selecting the new scholars had been a privilege, and pointed to their determination and creativity. Thompson called the students’ calibre exceptional and said Berendsen would bring valuable insight to the committee. Her appointment comes as the RTS continues to broaden the routes it supports into television and digital media careers. The comments make the case for the students and the incoming chair, while the practical test will be whether the programme continues to connect its stated ambitions with opportunities recipients can use.

What the programme’s next phase will show

The expanded digital remit and the incoming committee chair give the RTS two ways to shape what the bursaries support: the kinds of careers students can pursue and the guidance they receive along the way. If you’re working in this space, the useful question is how the scheme’s broad support translates into sustained access to paid work, rather than whether a single award can solve barriers across the industry. (And this is the part most people overlook.) Mentoring and introductions may help students understand where opportunities sit, but the announcement doesn’t quantify how often those connections lead to internships or jobs.

The current figures establish scale, continuity and a reported employment outcome. They don’t yet show which elements of the programme have the strongest effect, or whether outcomes differ between the two bursaries. That detail would help explain what the RTS should preserve as it expands the digital scheme’s remit. For now, the programme’s model is clear: combine direct financial support with mentoring, training and industry access. A practical test.