AY Student Lead Broadcast Production Engineer (WS-ST3)

Job Title: Student Lead Broadcast Production Engineer (WS-ST3)

Classification: Student Employee (non-exempt)

Name and Address of Employer: St. Olaf College, 1520 St. Olaf Ave, Northfield, MN 55057

Department Name: Broadcast Media Services

Unit Number (5 digits): 14127

Length of Position: See Employment Authorization 

Contact Person/Supervisor: Director of Broadcast/Media Services

Wage Range: $12.00-13.00/hour

Description of the Position: (Purpose of the Position):

The Student Lead Broadcast Production Engineer performs advanced audio, video, recording, streaming, post-production, and production-leadership work for concerts, worship services, academic programs, institutional ceremonies, and other College events.

In addition to fulfilling the expectations of the Student Broadcast Production Engineer position, Lead Broadcast Production Engineers take primary responsibility for approved advanced production roles, exercise greater independent technical and artistic judgment, organize student crews, mentor developing employees, and provide initial operational support when professional staff are working on other production needs.

Student Lead Broadcast Production Engineers are ordinarily selected from experienced Student Broadcast Production Engineers who have demonstrated advanced technical competence, sustained reliability, initiative, sound judgment, and the ability to guide others.  Appointment is based on demonstrated performance, advanced-role competence, departmental need, and approval by Broadcast Media Services professional staff.

Direct appointment to this position is uncommon and requires substantial equivalent experience.

Required paid staff meetings and training sessions are generally scheduled during Community Time when SOAR is not in session.

Transferable Skills:

• Leadership: Organize crews, communicate work plans, mentor developing employees, and guide assignments to successful completion.

• Critical Thinking: Interpret production needs, anticipate problems, make sound real-time decisions, and recognize when staff involvement is required.

• Communication: Provide clear production direction, explain procedures, coordinate with campus partners, and report issues accurately.

• Professionalism: Demonstrate preparation, reliability, accountability, discretion, and ownership of consequential public-facing work.

• Teamwork: Work collaboratively while helping students with different experience levels contribute effectively and safely.

• Technology: Apply advanced knowledge of production systems across varied venues, programs, and technical conditions.

• Career and Self-Development: Continue developing advanced technical, teaching, coordination, and problem-solving skills.

• Community and Belonging: Foster a respectful environment in which student employees can learn, participate, and succeed.

Duties and Responsibilities:

Advanced Production Work

• Perform the applicable technical, physical, safety, meeting, training, setup, strike, and cleanup responsibilities of the Student Broadcast Production Engineer position.

• Take primary responsibility for advanced production roles requiring substantial technical skill, independent judgment, production leadership, or responsibility for a public-facing product.

• Review event requirements, determine production needs within established departmental practices, and coordinate preparation with staff, students, performers, presenters, and event partners.

• Anticipate technical, artistic, staffing, and logistical needs; resolve routine issues without continuous staff direction; and ensure assigned production responsibilities are completed successfully.

Audio, Video, and Media Work

• Prepare and operate complex audio, video, recording, streaming, graphics, projection, presentation, and related production systems.

• Make real-time technical and artistic decisions affecting audio balance, intelligibility, visual coverage, framing, pacing, graphics, transitions, and the audience experience.

• Translate programs, scores, service plans, and production instructions into effective audio, visual, or technical production plans.

• Coordinate audio, video, recording, streaming, presentation, and event timing so the production functions as an integrated whole.

• Perform advanced editing, quality control, metadata verification, media preparation, delivery, or archival work when assigned; identify deficient work and correct it within approved procedures or refer it to professional staff.

Crew Leadership and Mentoring

• Organize and guide small student crews completing equipment transport, loading, setup, strike, cable installation, microphone placement, and other production assignments under professional-staff direction.

• Convert broad staff instructions into a practical work plan, divide immediate tasks, communicate expected results, monitor progress, and verify completion.

• Participate fully in routine and physical production work while modeling safe, efficient, and professional practices.

• Train and mentor developing students by explaining procedures, production standards, and the reasoning behind them.

• Reinforce expectations for preparation, communication, attention, teamwork, safety, equipment care, cleanup, and reporting; communicate recurring concerns to professional staff without exercising formal disciplinary authority.

Troubleshooting and Operational Support

• Provide initial student-level procedural and technical support during assigned paid work.

• Troubleshoot methodically using approved procedures.

• Determine whether an issue can be resolved by trained students or requires immediate professional-staff involvement.

• Escalate unsafe, undocumented, recurring, or production-critical problems promptly and document symptoms, actions attempted, temporary solutions, and unresolved needs clearly.

Training and Professional Expectations

• Maintain competence in approved advanced roles and in the core responsibilities of the Student Broadcast Production Engineer position.

• Complete required College and departmental training, including safety training, and attend required paid staff meetings and training sessions.

• Continue participating in equipment movement, setup, strike, cleanup, and other shared departmental work.

• Accept and apply feedback while continuing to develop technical, leadership, teaching, and communication skills.

• Record all production, meeting, training, and related work time accurately and perform other related duties as assigned.

Required Qualifications: (Education/Experience/Skills)

• Prior service as a BMS Student Broadcast Production Engineer or equivalent audio, video, recording, streaming, live-event, or technical production experience.

• Demonstrated competence in multiple standard production roles and advanced competence in at least one production area.

• Demonstrated reliability, punctuality, preparation, communication, initiative, and follow-through.

• Ability to interpret event requirements and complete advanced assignments with limited direct supervision.

• Ability to make sound real-time technical or artistic decisions within departmental procedures.

• Ability to organize and guide small student crews through physical, technical, and logistical production work.

• Ability to train and mentor developing students and provide clear, constructive guidance.

• Ability to troubleshoot methodically and recognize when professional-staff involvement is required.

• Willingness to participate fully in routine physical work.

• Ability to communicate professionally with students, staff, performers, presenters, event partners, and members of the public.

• Ability to attend required paid meetings and training sessions and work event-dependent hours, including occasional evenings, weekends, early mornings, and academic breaks.

• Ability to complete required College and departmental training.

Preferred Qualifications: (Education/Experience/Skills)

• Advanced experience in broadcast or live-event audio, music recording, video directing, score reading, camera systems, video switching, graphics, streaming, projection, post-production, media management, or equivalent work.

• Experience teaching, mentoring, leading, or coordinating peers.

• Familiarity with varied production settings, including concerts, worship services, lectures, ceremonies, and institutional events.

• Demonstrated ability to remain calm, make decisions, and communicate clearly during time-sensitive or technically challenging situations.

• Experience identifying recurring technical problems, outdated procedures, or training needs and communicating them constructively.

Physical and Environmental Factors

This position requires crouching, stooping, kneeling/crawling, climbing/balancing, reaching overhead, grasping/handling, pushing/pulling, lifting and carrying objects up to 50 lbs., repetitive motions, and operating equipment or machinery to perform the essential functions. It also may require exposure to loud noise and heights or cramped quarters to perform the essential functions. Candidates must possess the ability to safely perform the physical work required of all duties with or without reasonable accommodation.

Supervision and Scope of Authority

The Student Lead Broadcast Production Engineer works under the supervision of the Director of Broadcast Media Services and other designated professional staff.

Lead Broadcast Production Engineers may provide production direction and procedural guidance, organize small crews, assign immediate tasks within a staff-approved work plan, mentor students, guide approved troubleshooting, verify completion, and report problems.

This job description is for general information purposes.  It is not intended to list all duties and responsibilities of the position.  This job description is subject to change at any time by St. Olaf College, with or without prior notice.