Meet Jennifer and find out about her life as a senior research manager at the BBC. Part of our Bitesize world of work series.
Jennifer Stelfox - Senior researcher
My job is to look at all the data we have available to us, so that we can understand what the audiences want from the BBC.
I left uni with a history degree and everyone turned round to me and said, are you going to work in a museum or are you going to be a history teacher? I didn’t want to do either of those things. What I did know is that I really enjoyed the research side of my degree. So looking at lots of different pieces of information and being able to work from the different sources what that meant as an overall story, and build my own opinion, my own debates around that information.
A lot of people don't know that this work exists, but actually exist in all kinds of businesses. Everyone wants to know how their content is performing. So there's a whole range of jobs that are out there that allow you to do this work.
The skills that you need for my type of role are really being able to look at lots of different data patterns and lots of different information sources and being able to bring them down into one concise story, so that we can take all of the information we have available to us and tell stakeholders really simply what is and isn't working.
I think typically there’s a perception that you have to be very data-driven, and very maths-driven in this role. And that's because there is a lot of data to be used, but I think equally you also need a very logical brain, so you don't have to be from a maths or a science background to excel in this career.
Working at the BBC is really great. I genuinely come to work every day and enjoy myself. I'm really privileged that we to get work in such an exciting place, with lots of different incredibly intelligent people from content makers to developers and it really feels like you're part of a team, not just within your immediate team, but you can really feel that across the BBC.
I really love it when I can see my recommendations being taken on board by content makers, and then we see our audiences reacting to it in a really positive way.
You don't have to be from a maths or a science background to excel in this career.
- Jennifer’s job is to analyse data in order to understand what audiences want from the BBC. She then presents that information to the people who make the programmes and content
- She studied History at university, but realised it was the research side of her degree that she enjoyed the most
- The key skill for Jennifer’s role is being able to extract the relevant information from lots of different sources and then being able to feed that back to colleagues in a relatable way. The job is very data-driven, but you also need a logical brain
- Jennifer says this kind of work exists in all kinds of businesses, which means there is a whole range of jobs out there where you could use these skills.
A similar role to a senior research manager is a data analyst-statistician. Data analyst-statisticians collect numbers and statistics to identify trends, create models and present results.
What to expect if you want to be a data analyst-statistician
- Data analyst-statistician average salary: £23,000 to £62,000 per year
- Data analyst-statistician typical working hours: 37 to 39 hours per week
What qualifications do you need to be a data analyst?
You could get into this role via a university course, a college course (you may be able to start by doing a T-level in Digital Business Services - England-only), an apprenticeship or a graduate training scheme.
Sources: LMI for All, National Careers Service, GOV.UK
This information is a guide and is constantly changing. Please check the National Careers Service website for the latest information and all the qualifications needed and the GOV.UK website for more on T-levels.
For careers advice in all parts of the UK visit: National Careers Service (England), nidirect (Northern Ireland), My World of Work (Scotland) and Careers Wales (Wales).
Find out more
Work experience in your area
Find work experience placements with Workfinder.
Tips and advice
Help with interviews, writing a CV and all things work experience related.
Jaz: research scientist. video
Jaz is a research scientist and PhD student.
Careers A to Z: Find your perfect job
From actor to zoologist, find the right fit for you.
Megan: trainee business analyst
Megan's a business data analyst in the NHS.
