Career Trends: Broadcast, Sound, and Video Technicians

Broadcast and sound engineering technicians set up, operate, and maintain the electrical equipment for radio programs, television broadcasts, concerts, sound recordings, and movies.

Broadcast and sound engineering technicians typically work indoors in radio, television, movie, and recording studios. They can also work in hotels, arenas, or in offices and school buildings.

Broadcast and sound engineering technicians typically need postsecondary education. Depending on the work they do, it could be either a postsecondary nondegree award or an associate’s degree.

Employment of broadcast and sound engineering technicians is projected to grow 7 percent from 2014 to 2024, about as fast as the average for all occupations. Growth is expected to stem from businesses, schools, and radio and television stations seeking new equipment to improve their audio and video capabilities.

This occupation supported 121,400 jobs in 2012 and 117,100 jobs in 2014, reflecting a decline of 3.5%. In 2012, this occupation was projected to increase by 8.6% in 2022 to 131,900 jobs. As of 2014, to keep pace with prediction, the expected number of jobs was 123,500, compared with an observed value of 117,100, 5.2% lower than expected. This indicates current employment trends are much worse than the 2012 trend within this occupation. In 2014, this occupation was projected to increase by 6.5% in 2024 to 125,000 jobs. Linear extrapolation of the 2012 projection for 2022 results in an expected number of 134,000 jobs for 2024, 7.2% higher than the 2014 projection for 2024. This indicates expectations for future employment trends are much worse than the 2012 trend within this occupation.