Broadcast technician to sound mastering engineer
A broadcast technician already meets 38% of what the sound mastering engineer role asks for. The move turns on 7 required skills not yet in the profile.
56.3/ 100
1 How much of what a sound mastering engineer is expected to do is already part of a broadcast technician’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the sound mastering engineer role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A sound mastering engineer role treats 5 of its required skills as things a broadcast technician already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- audio technology
- audiovisual products
- edit recorded sound
- manage sound quality
- operate audio-signal processors
What stands in the way is 7 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 6 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A sound mastering engineer role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a broadcast technician background worth leading with.
- already held operate audio-signal processors working with machinery and specialised equipment
- already held audio technology arts and humanities
- already held manage sound quality constructing
- already held audiovisual products arts and humanities
- already held audiovisual equipment arts and humanities
- already held edit recorded sound working with computers
All 6 carried skills, including the 5 the sound mastering engineer role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 12 missing skills fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn audio mastering required
- still to learn types of audiovisual formats required
- optional, not held audio post-production optional
- optional, not held musical instruments optional
- optional, not held musical theory optional
- optional, not held musical genres optional
- still to learn coordinate audio system programmes required
- optional, not held operate an audio mixing console optional
- still to learn adapt to artists' creative demands required
- still to learn assess sound quality required
- still to learn audio editing software required
- still to learn convert different audiovisual formats required
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a sound mastering engineer role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 adapt to artists' creative demands practise this
- 02 assess sound quality practise this
- 03 audio mastering study this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 6 skills that carry over
- already held audio technology knowledge
- already held audiovisual products knowledge
- already held edit recorded sound skill
- already held manage sound quality skill
- already held operate audio-signal processors skill
- already held audiovisual equipment knowledge
5 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held audio post-production optional
- optional, not held musical instruments optional
- optional, not held musical theory optional
- optional, not held operate an audio mixing console optional
- optional, not held musical genres optional
36 held skills the sound mastering engineer role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role ICT communications protocols knowledge
- not needed by the target role adjust video transmissions skill
- not needed by the target role administer ICT system skill
- not needed by the target role align antennae with receiving dishes skill
- not needed by the target role assemble video tape footage skill
- not needed by the target role assist multimedia operator skill
- not needed by the target role broadcast equipment knowledge
- not needed by the target role broadcast using Internet Protocol skill
- not needed by the target role calibrate electronic instruments skill
- not needed by the target role coordinate activities in audio recording studio skill
- not needed by the target role develop programming schedule skill
- not needed by the target role electronics principles knowledge
- not needed by the target role execute integration testing skill
- not needed by the target role install low voltage wiring skill
- not needed by the target role maintain audiovisual equipment skill
- not needed by the target role maintain broadcast equipment skill
- not needed by the target role maintain electrical equipment skill
- not needed by the target role maintain electronic equipment skill
- not needed by the target role maintain internet protocol configuration skill
- not needed by the target role media formats knowledge
- not needed by the target role meet deadlines skill
- not needed by the target role monitor quality of broadcasts skill
- not needed by the target role multimedia systems knowledge
- not needed by the target role operate audio equipment skill
- not needed by the target role operate broadcast equipment skill
- not needed by the target role operate electronic measuring instruments skill
- not needed by the target role operate remote broadcast equipment skill
- not needed by the target role provide multimedia content skill
- not needed by the target role record multi-track sound skill
- not needed by the target role select recording source skill
- not needed by the target role set up audiovisual peripheral equipment skill
- not needed by the target role set up broadcast equipment skill
- not needed by the target role set up portable field transmission equipment skill
- not needed by the target role set up sound equipment skill
- not needed by the target role signal cues to announcers skill
- not needed by the target role use audio reproduction software skill
7 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn audio mastering required
- still to learn audio editing software required
- still to learn types of audiovisual formats required
- optional, not held audio post-production optional
- optional, not held musical instruments optional
- optional, not held musical theory optional
- optional, not held musical genres optional
Common questions about this move
Can a broadcast technician become a sound mastering engineer?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A broadcast technician already covers 38% of what a sound mastering engineer is expected to do: 6 skills carry over, 5 of which the sound mastering engineer role treats as required.
What skills does a broadcast technician need to become a sound mastering engineer?
7 required skills are missing, plus 5 optional ones. They fall into 6 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by arts and humanities. The single most important is adapt to artists' creative demands.
How hard is the move from broadcast technician to sound mastering engineer?
Its learning distance is 56.3 out of 100, which is the substantial band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.