BNNVARA - Internship
A year at the Dutch public broadcaster: started in UX and design, moved into a development team, and wrote the business case for a Radio 2 expense system.
About BNNVARA
BNNVARA is a public broadcaster in the Netherlands, creating content for television, radio, and digital platforms. During my second year at Utrecht University of Applied Sciences, I started my internship here - an experience that would shape my career path.
The Journey
Initial Focus: UX & Design
I started my internship with a focus on UX and design, learning about user-centered design principles and working on improving user experiences across various applications.
Transition to Development
After 2-3 months, I got the opportunity to join a developer team (still as an intern). This was a pivotal moment - I dove deep into full-stack development, learning from experienced developers and contributing to real production systems.
Extended Internship
My initial 6-month internship was extended for another 6 months, giving me the chance to work with different development teams and contribute to various internal applications. During this time, I gained hands-on experience with the full technology stack and development workflow.
Key Project: Radio 2 Expense System
During my internship, I created a comprehensive project proposal for handling expense reimbursement for Radio 2 guests. This wasn't just a technical specification - it was a complete business case.
- Analyzed current manual processes and pain points
- Designed automated solution for expense tracking and reimbursement
- Created detailed cost calculation for development and maintenance
- Developed timeline for return on investment (ROI)
- Presented proposal to stakeholders
This project demonstrated not just technical skills, but also the ability to understand business needs, calculate costs, and present solutions that make financial sense.
What I Learned
- Working in a professional development environment with experienced teams
- Full-stack development with modern JavaScript/TypeScript and PHP/Symfony
- GraphQL architecture and Backend-for-Frontend patterns
- Creating business cases with cost calculations and ROI analysis
- Collaborating across teams and departments
- The importance of understanding both technical and business requirements
- Code review processes and maintaining production systems
What Came Next
The internship turned into a full-time job. Continue to my full-stack role →