STUDIO & BROADCAST SYSTEMS ENGINEER, WBUR Engineering, Operations & IT - Boston University

Who We Are & What We Can Offer You:

WBUR is Boston’s NPR and a public media leader, producing exceptional journalism on-air, online, on-demand, and in real life. Our mission is to produce high-quality journalism and enriching experiences that foster understanding, connection, and community for an expanding circle of people. WBUR is member-supported and licensed to Boston University.

WBUR is brimming with talent and ambition. Our colleagues work hard, strive for excellence, value truth, creativity, diverse perspectives, and open debate. Our culture is warm and welcoming —no matter what your role is —we work hard to ensure that everyone feels like they belong. On top of that people are both respectful and passionate about the work we do.

We’ve got exciting plans to keep innovating and building WBUR for the future. It’s a place to do meaningful work with interesting people and to learn and grow along the way.

We offer our employees both hybrid and in-office work arrangements.

We also offer:

• Health and Well Being Benefits including Gender Affirming Healthcare
• Paid Time Off, Holidays & Intersession
• Tuition Remission and Professional Development through Boston University

The Opportunity and Who You’ll Work With:

Position Type: Permanent, Full Time, Benefits Eligible

Work Format: 100% Onsite with up to 10% day travel to our transmitter sites in Brewster, Needham, Newton and Tisbury (Martha’s Vineyard).

Schedule: Typically Monday Friday and hours are typically 09:00AM-05:00PM ET with rotating 24/7 on call support.

At WBUR, our Engineering, Operations & IT department is pivotal to maintaining and advancing the technical infrastructure that supports our news and content production, and its distribution. We are responsible for ensuring the reliability and efficiency of broadcast equipment, digital platforms, communication networks, and live events.

WBUR produces programming that goes out to local and national audiences numbering in the millions. Restoring those operations in an emergency is of critical importance, as well as assuring the systems that produce that programming are working sufficiently well to avoid breakdowns and failures of a transient nature.

As our Studio and Broadcast Engineer, you will provide support for all studio resources employed in broadcast transmission, such as digital audio workstations, automated playout systems, audio mixing systems, transmission systems and their associated equipment. You will be responsible for the purchase and installation of new equipment as needed. You will repair and maintain studio and transmission equipment as needed.

You will be needed to work on-call 24 hours / 7 days per week for support on a rotation basis with our Chief Engineer and Assistant Chief Engineer.

You will assist on special projects such as remote broadcasts and new studio or transmission facilities as assigned by the Chief Engineer. In the event that the Chief Engineer is away, you will report to the Assistant Chief Engineer.

Essential Functions:

• (30%) Execute repairs for studio and broadcast equipment as necessary and conduct testing to ensure optimal performance. Independently verify that studio and broadcast equipment are operating safely and optimally, ready for live work on air. Rapid decision-making on technical triage in response to live on-air equipment failures is critical.
• (25%) Specify new equipment for purchase using Purchase Card and carry out equipment and software installation.
• (20%) Provide training and assistance to operations staff as it relates to the implementation and maintenance of studio and broadcast equipment. Provide 24/7 on-call station support on a rotation basis with Engineering colleagues, including evening and weekend support.
• (15%) Maintain equipment at remote sites and for special projects as necessary.
• (10%) Assist the Chief and Assistant Chief Engineer with building, operating, and maintaining off-site transmission facilities as needed. Provide assistance to WBUR Engineering, Operations & IT department as availability allows.

Required Skills

What You’ll Need to Succeed:

Education and Experience:

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent/relevant experience
• 3-5 years of related experience or equivalent
• Certified Broadcast Radio Engineer from the Society of Broadcast Engineers or related / equivalent certification and / or training is a plus.

Capabilities and Proficiencies:

• An excitement about WBUR’s mission to provide an essential public good: high-quality journalism and enriching experiences that foster understanding, connection and community.
• A valid driver’s license is required for travel to transmitter site work.
• Proficiency in computer skills, including computer construction, repair and configuration of personal computers up to file servers.
• Basic understanding of computer interconnection and networking is needed.
• Understanding of legal and technical requirements of the Federal Communications Commission that govern radio broadcasting is needed.
• Ability to independently verify and confirm if studio and/or broadcast equipment is at a safe operational level once released for live work on air.
• Ability to make quick decisions on technical triage during live on-air operations when impacted by equipment failures in our WBUR Transmission systems.
• Detailed understanding of our WBUR Transmission paths and redundant systems is needed along with a highly logical approach to problem solving in situations that require urgent responses.

In an ongoing effort to enrich our organizational culture, WBUR is committed to building a staff and leadership team that reflects the diversity of our city, region and nation.

Designing an organization where everyone thrives, creating connection and community that permeates our workplace requires real change across all facets of what we do and who we are.

We must hire, support, develop, advance and retain diverse talent at all levels of the organization with a standard of inclusive excellence.

If you are excited by this opportunity and have a passion for our mission - whether you meet all or some of our criteria - we want to talk to you. After submitting your application join our Talent Community!

If you require an ADA reasonable accommodation to complete your application and/or participate in the interview process, please let us know here.

We are an equal opportunity employer, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, natural or protective hairstyle, religion, sex, age, national origin, physical or mental disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, military service, pregnancy or pregnancy-related condition, or because of marital, parental, or veteran status. We are a VEVRAA Federal Contractor.