radio station online courses

Discussion in 'General Distance Learning Discussions' started by euphoric, May 17, 2007.

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  1. euphoric

    euphoric New Member

    i am planning to start working at a radio station, are there any online coures ? does anyone know?
     
  2. Shawn Ambrose

    Shawn Ambrose New Member

    What are you looking for? Communications degree, broadcast production cert... etc.

    Shawn
     
  3. TCord1964

    TCord1964 New Member

    As someone who worked at radio stations for most of my 22-year broadcasing career my question is "why would you want to do such a thing?" What job do you plan to get at a radio station? On-air work? Be warned: the salaries are pitifully low (the advertising sales people make much, much more), only the top .001 percent of the on-air announcers make the mega-bucks. While the work is fun, the hours are long and the rewards are few. Job security? Nope. In case you think I am a bitter ex-disc jockey, think again. I worked in the business a long time as a news anchor and reporter, and before I left the business I was a correspondent for a national radio news network.

    On-air work at a rado station is one of those things you have to learn by doing. You're not going to learn it from an online course. There are some communications and journalism courses you can take online, but you have to have "butt in the seat" time at a radio station to learn the ins and outs of working on the air. I got my diploma in radio broadcasting at a state-approved vocational school. You could go to a "radio broadcasting school" or you could go to a full-time Mass Communications program at a state college. To be honest with you, you don't need either one. Find the smallest radio station in your area and approach them about doing an internship or some part-time on-air work. Most radio stations are desperate for part-time employees and they will train you. Soak up all the info you can and try to work yourself up to a full-time gig at the station. Work there full-time for a year or two (again, expect to make next to no money), all the while recording yourself while you're on the air. Condense a good representation of your on-air work into a two to three-minute audio sample, and use that as your audition sample to get a job at a bigger and better (and higher-paying) radio station. Repeat this process repeatedly over the course of your radio career, and you may eventually find yourself at a major market station making enough money to live on.

    My advice: get the part-time job at the radio station while getting a business degree. Work your way into the sales department (they'll train you, too) where you will actually earn a living. After a few years, work your way into a general manager or sales manager job at a large market radio station (that's where the REAL money is in broadcasting).

    Drive by a radio station sometime and look in the parking lot. See the cars that look like total pieces of crap? Those belong to the on-air people. See the BMW, Lexus and SAAB? Those belong to the general manager and the sales people.
     
  4. euphoric

    euphoric New Member

    i wanted to get a part-time job to save some money, but luckilly, they told me if i do get the job they will train me,
     

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