CV or TV? 3.5 million Brits think they could become a firefighter or doctor based only on what they've learnt on TV
Ever got stuck into your favourite medical or legal TV show and thought “I could totally do that”? You’re not alone. New research by Sky reveals that 1 in 3 Brits think they could successfully give someone CPR purely based on what they’ve seen on TV, and almost 3.5 million Brits even believe they have what it takes to become a doctor or firefighter with no other training other than watching their favourite TV show.
The research, which was conducted by Sky in line with a three-part #OneChicago crossover event that aired on Friday 11 July on Sky and NOW, looked at how popular TV shows inspire people in their career choices. It revealed that a quarter of Brits were inspired by TV to go into their current field of work, and an estimated 1.35 million people even went as far as quitting their job to go into a different field after learning about it on TV - with Gen Z more likely to do so than any other generation.
And while not everyone is quite ready to take the plunge, a whopping 66% of Brits say they are open to the idea of changing career paths based on seeing other jobs on TV, with over 10 million (15%) Brits even admitting they are close to doing so.
Traditional roles still fill the top spots of the careers people would consider going into after seeing them on TV, with teacher (13%), lawyer (11%) and doctor (10%) amongst the top jobs. Men are even confident in their physical strength and abilities, with 1 in 10 convinced that they could have a career in the armed forces tomorrow purely based on their current level of expertise having watched people in the armed forces on TV or film.
Top 10 jobs people want to do after seeing them on TV
| Teacher | 13% |
| Writer | 11% |
| Lawyer | 11% |
| Artist | 10% |
| Doctor | 10% |
| Secret agent | 10% |
| Police officer | 10% |
| Coder | 9% |
| Hospitality | 9% |
| Architect | 9% |
15% of Brits are confident they could become a successful teacher tomorrow with no other experience other than seeing the job carried out on the screen, and some people even think they could become a doctor (5%), nurse (8%), or firefighter (5%).
But some take it further. When it comes to lifesaving procedures, 29% of Brits believe they could stop someone from bleeding out, and 12% say they could fight a fire, with men more confident in their firefighting skills than women (17% versus 7% respectively).
TV seems to have turned into a new form of education, as 16% have been able to save someone’s life using skills learned on TV, and a further 15% say watching TV has helped them diagnose an illness for themselves or someone else. Men see themselves as super sleuths, with 1 in 10 reporting they’ve been able to solve a crime (compared to 6% of women), and 6% of Brits have even been able to successfully defend themselves in court.
The latter may be down to the language used in TV shows, with the research revealing that watching TV is a way for Brits to learn and begin to use job-specific jargon such as ‘affidavit’ (28%), ‘acquittal’ (22%) and ‘perjury’ (21%) in their day-to-day lives.