The Intern

22 March 2013

Episode 1/4, Thursday 4th April, 9pm, Channel 4

Hilary Devey wants to kick down some doors.  Determined to get deserving young people a chance to land their dream jobs, she has persuaded some of Britain’s most exciting companies to let her hijack their normal recruitment policy.  

Each week three young hopefuls are given a week’s trial in the job of their dreams.  The three candidates don’t know it but Hilary has arranged for the week to be packed full of the biggest challenges and worst-case scenarios possible. Based on real life situations, each scenario they encounter will test a particular skill or aptitude deemed crucial to being a success in the particular industry. 

Each company boss is offering the best candidate a chance to secure their dream job – but only if they have seen the qualities and raw potential needed to cut it in their highly competitive world.   This will be the ultimate undercover job interview, allowing the candidates to prove they’ve got what it takes to secure the coveted job on offer.

With one million 18-24 year olds without a job in the UK, it’s never been harder for young people to get on the career ladder. Self-made millionaire and businesswoman Hilary Devey believes an entire generation are getting a raw deal in the current job market.

Hilary comments: “There are a lot of bright young people out there in dead end jobs, going no-where who think they have no future in this country. We are wasting so much talent.”

Hilary believes you don’t need a good CV and qualifications to succeed in the job market, saying, “I’ve not needed a good CV and qualifications to succeed, they are irrelevant to me. I’m interested in dedication and damned hard work.” She believes that if you give people the opportunity to show what they are made of they will grasp the opportunity and prove what they are made of.

Hilary is not alone. Major companies like Google now believe that traditional CVs aren't a good enough judge of potential, and will interview candidates up at 20 times to get to know them better.

With help and advice from Hilary along the way, only one hopeful will succeed in winning this extraordinary opportunity. Who will overcome all the odds to prove to Hilary they can step up and make the grade?
 
The Intern has searched the UK for promising young people full of untapped potential. The show offers disheartened young hopefuls the opportunity to get some experience and a foot in the door at industries they believe are impossible to break into.

In Episode 1, three young people who wouldn’t normally make it to a first interview get the chance of securing their dream job at one of Britain’s top hotels, the exclusive Red Carnation Collection. The candidates have one week to prove to Red Carnation Managing Director Jonathan Raggett they have the personality and skills to win a place on the hotel's management scheme

The hotel group's normal recruitment process means they usually take graduates with the ‘best relevant degrees’, or those with proven experience. Without the right qualifications, the doors to working in 5star hotel management are usually firmly shut.

Based on real life situations, each scenario they encounter will test a particular skill or aptitude deemed crucial to being a success in the hospitality industry.  How will 18 year old Taelre café worker cope when a guest’s Aston Martin is towed away?  Will 22 year old mum Georgia be able to deal with a warring couple when the wife suspects the husband of having an affair?  And how will 21 year old graduate Princess respond to a celebrity – Made in Chelsea’s Hugo - caught in a very compromising position?  Using actors and hidden cameras, Hilary has created the toughest challenges possible so her young hopefuls can prove they are up to the job.