The latest dispatch about the life of a BBC journalism trainee, from sports enthusiast Andy Burke:
My first week in radio was an eventful one. I was shadowing one of Radio Scotland's sports news presenters, Annie McGuire, who was showing me the ropes of sports bulletins.
She explained the basics of the VCS system which is used for editing in radio, and the technical stuff about running orders, scripts etc. This was all very interesting but on day-two of my radio stint she turned to me and said: "Do you fancy reading the 2pm bulletin?"
I tried to play it cool: "No problem."
It was now 1pm and, as the penny dropped that I would be going on national radio in less than an hour, I started to panic.
I got my script written early so I could go into the studio and practise several times before going live. Annie joined me in the studio for moral support when my big moment arrived.
At 2.03pm, the newsreader said: "That's the news. Now Andy Burke is here with the sport."
A huge adrenalin rush came over me, but thankfully I kept my cool and made it through the longest 60 seconds of my life without any mistakes. What a buzz!
The next day I was again asked to read the 2pm bulletin. As the previous day had gone so well I was far more relaxed. In fact, I was too relaxed. I did just one practice reading and, when I went live, I had a couple of stumbles. Nothing major, but not a great bulletin.
Preparation is key - lesson learned.
The most enjoyable part for me was doing interviews. I conducted a series of interviews with athletes in contention to make the London 2012 Olympics which I packaged for Radio Scotland's Sport Nation programme.
I also did phone interviews with Britain's number-one female tennis player Elena Baltacha, and during the Rugby World Cup I spoke to former England and British Lions centre Jeremy Guscott. Interviews like these, and speaking to players and managers after football matches, are one of the main reasons why I got into sports journalism.
There is a real art to painting a picture using only words. The pros have spent their entire careers honing the craft.
I loved just getting started.
Andy Burke is on the BBC Journalism Trainee Scheme. Before joining the BBC, Andy represented Scotland at youth-level rugby and had a number of jobs, including at the Ministry of Defence, before his thoughts turned to sports journalism.
The 15 members of the Journalism Trainee Scheme started their year of broadcast training in March. They are offered work in different departments along with career advice, CV clinics and interview practice to help them to find future jobs in the BBC, although there are no guarantees. The scheme has been running since 2007 and the recruitment process for the next intake will start at the end of September. To apply and for more details.
