Success Stories
Your journey to greatness starts with the Radio Connection!
Since enrolling in the program, Maryam Shapardson has had a variety of different types of radio opportunities to add to her experience artillery! Maryam has had the chance to intern and extern at three different radio stations in Southern California. Maryam has such a passion for working in radio that she was ready and willing to travelling 2 hours to make professional commitments even currently with her mentor in Whittier, CA. Maryam has had the opportunity to work a radio show weekly and develop her skills – eventually sees herself going into the corporate world whether it be here in LA, working for a company like Ustream in San Francisco, or anywhere!
“I had an internship in college with a radio station, I always knew from the first day this was what I wanted to do. I had on air time about a month ago with my mentor and another one on CBS live radio after I returned from the World Cup in Brazil! I’m all about sports radio, that’s what I like to talk about, it’s what I love. College football is a lot of fun. I have the travel bug. In the next month or so Jim Daniels wants to get us together for a podcast.”
Before attending classes through Radio Connection, Jack Esko did a program with sports mentoring group for 6 months. After graduating the radio program with KKVV Christian Radio with Fred Hodges, Jack Esko has successfully started up his own podcast and YouTube channel!
In recent months, Sundance had his own radio show at FFC Free Radio where he externd under John Miller. His desire to work hands on in a real radio station led him to the Radio Connection; his goals are to do Voice Overs and eventually become a Radio DJ. John Miller stated that Sundance’s show is called GeekLine where he talks about everything from Star Wars to RPG games every Tuesday from 8-10pm!
Here Sundance’s podcast. The future of radio!
“Everything is FANTASTIC!! We’re chugging into the Sports Broadcasting unit of the course and I also have some good news!! Through the station, I am now doing ACTUAL SPORTS PLAY BY PLAY BROADCASTING!!”
“Thank you guys at Radio Connection for providing a service that has allowed me to pursue my dream :)”
— Alan Soriano
“Alan is an amazing talent, so much so I have trouble staying out in front of him. When I give him an assignment he finishes it in record time and then looks ahead and asks questions about where we are going next. He has all the skills like a good voice, a creative mind, he writes great copy and has tremendous drive. He is willing to go where the work is. As you know, on-air work is never easy to find but Alan has entry level skill right now.”
This superstar broadcaster talks the future of radio in broadcasting via internet, video, and podcast. Over the last couple of months, Zoe and her mentor Jim Daniels at NBC Sports Radio have been working on a pitch package for a fun sports show Zoe created and hopes to star in! Most recently, Zoe was offered an on-air position recently as well! In recent news, Zoe will be meeting with the program director at KIXY in San Diego and is in contact and ready to pitch her show idea to Fox Sports.
Watch her reel on YouTube!
In recent months, students have had the opportunity to use studio equipment, watch on-air live sessions featuring Sean and special guests, record their own demos, operate the radio board, and learn VOX pro! “It’s a very hands-on studio,” says Sean “The Rabbi”. WMMR is a proud rock radio station featuring morning talk shows.
“Tonight’s meeting went a lot better than the first one. I worked on assignment 2 and completed it. My mentor critiqued it and overall was pleased with my work. I did a better job of speaking at a slower pace and being less animated. Also the sound of my voice was good. I am glad my work is improving and I hope to stay on the right track.”
“It was GREAT and productive night during my mentor’s radio shows this past Tuesday. I conducted my first full length interview with my first subject, a former high school baseball teammate who had to overcome a rare disorder at a young age to get back on the baseball field, where he excelled in high school, en route to signing a letter of intent to Colorado Mesa University in Grand Junction, CO, where he’s a Pitcher and studying Construction Management.
My mentor let me co-host the entire show with him on Mountain Country 107.9FM!”
“A GREAT first day at the radio station! I shadowed and help co-host their show with my mentor during Session one. I had the pleasure of interviewing Craig Elsten, the voice of the San Diego Sockers of the Professional Arena Soccer League (PASL) who joined us to talk about the Sockers’ 2013/14 regular season, which saw the team lose at home for the first time since 2009, leading to an 0-2 start that finished with a 13-3 regular season record.”
“I met with my mentor yesterday afternoon, and he’s a very cool cat. The great thing is I’ve been listening to this guy for the last four years on the air in Austin and it’s a real honor to be able to learn the ropes from a legend. I’m truly excited about this opportunity and know that if I do the job that I’m capable of doing that I will succeed beyond my wildest dreams.”
“With my mentor covering the recent playoff run for the Dodgers as well as other sports happenings, I’ve been exploring my range by reading the practice commercials in the textbook, and recording a few and sending them off. Already finished with my assignments, I have been working on commercials that stretch my voice and have discovered my diaphragm and its many wonderful properties. I am extremely proficient at Adobe Audition by now, and have been having fun mixing music and sound effects into my recordings. I must say this is the most unique, fun experience I have had with school!”
“I am really enjoying this program, and so glad and honored to be a part of it. My mentor has been great! His insights have really helped me understand the art of what broadcasting is. Not to mention he is a great guy to boot. He gave me some assignments which I have had fun writing as well as commercials to record and produce, and I am having a blast!”
“Since meeting with my mentor I have been working on vocal techniques and very rough recording of the second assignment. I have also started my own podcast just for fun and love it”
“I spent 14 hours straight in the studio and completed my very own first show live on the air! I’m having a blast and good things are happening for me!”
Working off the previous lesson I took the commercials I scripted and added music to make them more appealing. Spent most of the time between last lesson and this choosing what music to use. I was very pleased with the choices I made. My mentor said the scripts I wrote were excellent as good as people already in the industry. He also felt the musical pieces of my commercials were great.
I got a good idea of the different commercial types and how matching the style to how the copy is written is a real effective way to come out with a good announcement. (It) was real preparation and understanding before even so much as turning the mic on.
I absolutely love my mentor! He is a blast, and I think he likes me a lot too. My mentor is now going to be helping me get me a job with his station after I’m graduate the Radio Connection, so I’m doing pretty well. Not only this, but my mentor is also going to help me put together a resume with a recording of myself, so when I find a job, I’ll have it to help me get any job I want.
My mentor, who I am externing for, asked me to contribute to the women’s day program. I have to do a live show on spoken word and poetry and I will be live interviewing some young ladies. The will be my first experience live on the radio and I will be heard via the internet on a yet another radio station! This will be my first live show BY MYSELF and I am so excited. This will help me stand out when I graduated with the Radio Connection and start my job search with the help of the Job Placement Assistance Program offered by the Radio Connection. I didn’t think I would be on-air, let alone and by myself as producer and organizer. So, this is something that means a lot to me, and in the future I will be known and well paid for my work. Thank you Radio Connection for placing me with my mentor!
When I first got to my mentors’ station, my mentor gave me some tests that reviewed the history of radio, as well as the rules, regulations, and guidelines of broadcasting. We also went over the FCC’s importance in broadcasting and the different types of employment opportunities in broadcasting. We also went over a lot about the equipment, the software, and general run down of the way my mentor and his staff runs the station. I have also used the equipment quite a bit and did some voice tracks. I have also joined a team in a podcast show and we are allowed to use one of the stations actual studios. The hands on aspects so far have been phenomenal. My mentor also told me a bit about himself, and his past history in broadcasting. This week coming up we will be moving forward more rapidly and I will begin recording the commercials involved in the next sessions. I am learning so much while externing for my mentor as well. I am there a lot and I love it. Everything is going exactly the way I hoped for and then some. I am definitely learning more through the Radio Connection then I ever would in a regular school. For this, I thank you.
Today I met with my mentor and we went over my homework, which consisted of recorded commercials that were 30 to 60 seconds long. Everything went very well. I am getting better and better with more practice, and as the Radio Connection program progresses. My mentor is a good teacher, as you can’t get away with anything with her. The reason is, my mentor doesn’t want me to make common mistakes now, because it will be a problem later down the road.
Everything is excellent with my mentor. The first session with my mentor went amazing, as well as the station. Everyone in my mentors’ station are all completely welcoming, and have plenty of work for me to assist with. I am extremely happy and stoked with my progression in the Radio Connection. Thank you all so much, this is EXACTLY, if not BETTER, then where I wanted to be!
Today, at my mentors’ studio, one of the board operators for the station had me cover the board for him. At the top of the three o’clock hour I mistakenly played a national commercial in addition to our local break. I talked to my mentor about it and he said to just do a two minute, instead of a three minute, break later in the hour to get back on time. I did that and also faded out the final few seconds of the show and then, I got the show back on time. So, it went fairly well. The good news is, after making a few rookie mistakes, I feel I have a strong grasp on how to run the board now without problems. I now even have an strong sense of how to correct mistakes in the future.
During my session today with my mentor, I got the opportunity to get into the recording booth and record some commercials I had been practicing. I recorded five different commercials twice, and after I finished recording, my mentor and I sat down so that my mentor could give me his feedback. The encouraging thing was hearing that I was at a pretty decent level, even though I had no prior recording experience. My mentor gave me a lot of confidence, as he was quite pleased, and felt I had a good foundation with lots of potential for growth. This was a very interesting session and I enjoyed being in the booth and hearing my voice upon completing the recordings.
