What does a Media Programming Director do?

Direct and coordinate activities of personnel engaged in preparation of radio or television station program schedules and programs, such as sports or news. Day to day that includes work like operate and maintain on-air and production audio equipment and Check completed program logs for accuracy and conformance with Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rules and regulations and resolve program log inaccuracies.

What skills should a Media Programming Director put on a resume?

O*NET rates Speaking, Critical Thinking, Judgment and Decision Making, Reading Comprehension, and Coordination among the most important skills for this occupation. Name the ones that are genuinely yours and show where you used them. A resume that lists skills you do not have is weaker than one that lists fewer.

What software should a Media Programming Director list?

Software recorded for this occupation includes Adobe Acrobat, Adobe Creative Cloud software, Adobe Photoshop, Apple Final Cut Pro, and Applicant tracking software. Applicant tracking systems match on the exact product name, so write the tool as the posting writes it rather than describing it in general terms.

What other job titles cover Media Programming Director work?

O*NET records 20 titles for this occupation, including News Director, Program Director, PD, and Program Manager. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.

What qualifications does a Media Programming Director need?

In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 52% reported their level of education as "Bachelor's Degree". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.

Will this resume pass an ATS for a Media Programming Director role?

No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer's system is configured, including ours. What you can control is that the resume parses cleanly, names the work in the words the posting uses, and does not claim anything you cannot back up.

Media Programming Director resume example

A resume for a Media Programming Director needs to show the work itself: direct and coordinate activities of personnel engaged in preparation of radio or television station program schedules and programs, such as sports or news. Day to day that means work like this: operate and maintain on-air and production audio equipment; check completed program logs for accuracy and conformance with Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rules and regulations and resolve program log inaccuracies. Recruiters and applicant tracking systems both read for the tasks and tools this role actually involves, so the strongest resume names them in your own experience rather than describing the job in the abstract. Below are the tasks O*NET records for this occupation, the software and tools it uses, the titles it is advertised under, and the skills worth naming if they are genuinely yours.

Also advertised as

The same job is posted under many titles. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.

News Director
Program Director
PD
Program Manager
Programming Director
Broadcast Content Manager
Newscast Director
Production Director
Program Coordinator
Station Manager
TV Program Director
Television Program Director
Cable TV Program Director
Broadcast Operations Director
Cable Television Program Director
Educational Programming Director
Media Coordinator
Program Supervisor

O*NET records 20 titles for this occupation in total.

What this work actually involves

Tasks recorded for this occupation, in O*NET's words. If your experience covers one of these, it belongs on your resume in your own words.

Operate and maintain on-air and production audio equipment.
Check completed program logs for accuracy and conformance with Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rules and regulations and resolve program log inaccuracies.
Read news, read or record public service and promotional announcements, or perform other on-air duties.
Direct and coordinate activities of personnel engaged in broadcast news, sports, or programming.
Monitor and review programming to ensure that schedules are met, guidelines are adhered to, and performances are of adequate quality.
Prepare copy and edit tape so that material is ready for broadcasting.
Coordinate activities between departments, such as news and programming.
Perform personnel duties, such as hiring staff and evaluating work performance.
Establish work schedules and assign work to staff members.
Develop promotions for current programs and specials.
Plan and schedule programming and event coverage, based on broadcast length, time availability, and other factors, such as community needs, ratings data, and viewer demographics.
Monitor network transmissions for advisories concerning daily program schedules, program content, special feeds, or program changes.

23 tasks are recorded in total; these are the most central.

Example bullets for this role

Built from this occupation's own tasks. The brackets stay empty on purpose: we will not invent a number for you, and a fabricated metric is the fastest way to lose an interview you had already won.

Operate and maintain on-air and production audio equipment, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Check completed program logs for accuracy and conformance with Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rules and regulations and resolve program log inaccuracies, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Read news, read or record public service and promotional announcements, or perform other on-air duties, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
Direct and coordinate activities of personnel engaged in broadcast news, sports, or programming, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].

Software used in this role

Recorded for this occupation by O*NET. An applicant tracking system matches the exact product name, so write the tool the way the posting writes it.

Adobe Acrobat
Adobe Creative Cloud software
Adobe Photoshop
Apple Final Cut Pro
Applicant tracking software
Avid Technology iNEWS
Broadcast Electronics AudioVAULT FleX
Content management systems CMS
Email software
Facebook
FileMaker Pro
Google Analytics
Hypertext markup language HTML
Microsoft Excel

25 software entries are recorded in total.

Tools and equipment

The physical equipment this occupation is recorded as using. Worth naming when a posting asks for it by name.

Audio signal processors
Desktop computers
Digital audio recorders
Emergency alert system EAS equipment
Emergency communications scanners
Laser facsimile machines
Multi-line telephone systems
Personal computers
Sound mixing consoles
Tablet computers

Skills an ATS reads for

Worth naming only if they are genuinely yours. Keyword overlap is one input to a resume's score, not a verdict.

Adobe Creative Cloud
Adobe Photoshop
Google Analytics

What this job rates as most important

O*NET rates every skill for importance to this occupation. These are the highest rated, in order.

01Speaking
02Critical Thinking
03Judgment and Decision Making
04Reading Comprehension
05Coordination
06Time Management
07Active Learning
08Active Listening
09Management of Personnel Resources
10Monitoring

Knowledge areas

The subject knowledge this occupation draws on, rated by importance.

Communications and Media
Computers and Electronics
English Language
Administration and Management
Telecommunications
Customer and Personal Service
Sales and Marketing
Engineering and Technology

What qualifications people in this job have

From O*NET's survey of people doing this work. This is what postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.

52%Bachelor's Degree
31%High School Diploma, or the equivalent
15%Some College Courses

What level this role is pitched at

O*NET places this occupation in “Considerable Preparation Needed”. Most of these occupations require a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.

A considerable amount of work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is needed for these occupations. For example, an accountant must complete four years of college and work for several years in accounting to be considered qualified.

Common questions

What does a Media Programming Director do?: Direct and coordinate activities of personnel engaged in preparation of radio or television station program schedules and programs, such as sports or news. Day to day that includes work like operate and maintain on-air and production audio equipment and Check completed program logs for accuracy and conformance with Federal Communications Commission (FCC) rules and regulations and resolve program log inaccuracies.
What skills should a Media Programming Director put on a resume?: O*NET rates Speaking, Critical Thinking, Judgment and Decision Making, Reading Comprehension, and Coordination among the most important skills for this occupation. Name the ones that are genuinely yours and show where you used them. A resume that lists skills you do not have is weaker than one that lists fewer.
What software should a Media Programming Director list?: Software recorded for this occupation includes Adobe Acrobat, Adobe Creative Cloud software, Adobe Photoshop, Apple Final Cut Pro, and Applicant tracking software. Applicant tracking systems match on the exact product name, so write the tool as the posting writes it rather than describing it in general terms.
What other job titles cover Media Programming Director work?: O*NET records 20 titles for this occupation, including News Director, Program Director, PD, and Program Manager. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.
What qualifications does a Media Programming Director need?: In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 52% reported their level of education as "Bachelor's Degree". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.
Will this resume pass an ATS for a Media Programming Director role?: No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer's system is configured, including ours. What you can control is that the resume parses cleanly, names the work in the words the posting uses, and does not claim anything you cannot back up.

Related roles

Occupations O*NET records as closest to this one, and worth looking at if this search is not moving.

What this page cannot tell you

No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer’s ATS is configured, including ours.
This page makes no claim about pay, demand or how many people hold this job. O*NET does not publish that here and we will not estimate it.
Keyword overlap is one input to a resume’s score, not a verdict on you. A resume that names skills you do not have is worse than one that names fewer.

If this is the job you are aiming at, the guide to tailoring a resume covers how to aim one posting properly, and building and exporting a resume here is free.

Occupation data from the O*NET 29.1 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under CC BY 4.0. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. SpartanResume is not endorsed by USDOL/ETA.