How Did You Become A Broadcast Engineer?

Q: I realize this may not be the perfect forum to ask this but I'm looking for suggestions on how to become a broadcast engineer. I have a good technical background - I have been working for four years in interactive television for one of the big four broadcasting networks (developing software) and I have B.S. in computer engineering. I've talked to a couple people at work but I would like some outside advice on how to get started. I would really appreciate it. Thank you.

A: -Things were different when I started int he early 70's. I took a correspondence course form CIE (Cleveland Institute of Electronics) and got my FIrst Class FCC license. Then I found a radio station that needed some one with a license to babysit their transmitter and worked my way up through on-the-job experience and training. Don't know how one would do it today. There seems to be an abundance of people with computer, video and audio knowledge, but no new transmitter people. - From talking to the guys here at work, there is no real direct route to becoming a broadcast engineer. They suggested I start with production work, camera work, etc. I asked about certifications and licenses and they said they generally aren't needed. -Last time I looked, the only essential cert was for being a transmitter op, and I'm not sure whether it is still required. What is your actual interest? Do you want to be in maintenance? A facilities designer? The paths are a good deal different. I started in maintenance, progressed to engineering and engineering management, and then to facilities design. Many people find that engineering school is a good foundation for some branches of broadcast engineering, but it was not in my own path. Very few schools, the last I knew, offered any real value in broadcast-specific coverage of engineering. If facilities design is your interest, then I'd suggest starting by looking at the facilities around you, listening to operators' complaints, and then trying to imagine how you could redesign an existing facility to reduce or eliminate the shortcomings of the existing one. Start small, with an edit suite, for example. If there are engineers around you who are willing to advise, take advantage of that, and discuss with them your ideas for change. Let them tell you why your notions won't work (if that is the message), and learn from it all you can. There is a series of books by Harold Ennes from 25 or so years ago that presents very digestible info on broadcast engineering topics. I don't know if they are still in print, but they should certainly be available

from a library. About 30 years ago, there was a series of small books published by Tektronix that was excellent. One of them, in particular, was the starting point for my own studies. They're long since out of print, but you *may* find them in a library somewhere. On a more technical level, there is the Standard Handbook of Video and Television Engineering, from McGraw-Hill, and published this year. If it follows in the footsteps of its predecessors (it's not yet in my library), it will be worth many times its high purchase price. Finally, attend meetings of the SMPTE or the SBE, or both, depending on which are available to you. Join those organizations, and read their publications.