how do i get into radio research?

fluke

hey guys

I am an arts graduate who is interested in pursuing a career in radio, specifically in researching radio programmes.

I studied and completed a four-year Bachelor of Arts course in Humanities. The course work involved research for essays and exams.

I am keen to begin a career in radio. Therefore I would be extremely grateful if you any of you could give me advice on how get the ball rolling.
cheers,
fluke

tSubh Dearg

One of the best things you could probably do is to get in contact with your local community or hospital radio station. They are always looking for volunteers and you will learn a lot about radio from watching how they operate.

Check out the BCI's website for details of what community stations are in your local area. There's a link to their website in our radio links thread which is stickied at the top of the forum page.

shuushh

dont want to advertise or anythin but

www.radiowaves.fm

great site to check out for openings on their message boards

radioman

yeah I agree, there's a job spot forum on that site which is a good place to find vacancies

Crubeens

I agree that making yourself available to local stations free of charge is the best way to go. If you contact producers of talk shows and let them know you'd love to work on packages, do vox pops, and maybe even on air reports, you might be taken on. After time your CV starts to look healthy.

If a busy producer knows somebody is willing to fill ten minutes of airtime for them with quality material, they're not going to refuse. Don't just turn up and wait for them to give you something to do, go out and find stories and interesting items yourself and you'll become a valuable asset.

You will get paid after a while but be willing to work for free for as long as needs be

Dudess

Not trying to scaremonger, but I did a stint as a researcher for a talk show on a commercial radio station and it was not good. Got treated very badly, appallingly paid, was expected to come up with a three-hour show's worth of topics by myself five days a week, and then got **** if things didn't go to plan - which, inevitably, was often the case.
The less experience you have, the more difficult it will be to find work with an employer that treats you well. So, as the other posters have recommended, try to find voluntary work with a community station. These are often excellent training grounds. You might not get to do what you want, but grab it with both hands anyway. For example, it could be on-air stuff they want you to do. It doesn't matter. It's all relevant. Look into doing a course - a Fas one or a PLC one, or, since you have a degree, maybe a journalism postgrad. That might not seem necessary, but you'd be surprised. Sometimes it's what you could be up against when going for interview. Once you notch up some of the above, you should be able to get a good job with a good company. I got that researcher job on the strength of community radio experience and a PLC course in media production. Admittedly that was not a good job, but I didn't have a degree at the time.

Best of luck.