Patrick Lee: Work 300 Unit With Tune FM

For those who regularly tune into UNE’s student-powered radio station, Tune!FM, you may have heard  Patrick the past few weeks on Mondays and Tuesdays bringing you all the latest in UNE News, Music News, Science News and more! We recently caught up with Patrick to chat about his time at Tune, what he hopes to do after graduation, and how other students can join the team!

1) What degree are you studying?

I am studying a Bachelor of Arts, Majoring in Theatre and Performance, and Minoring in Writing.

2) Tell us about you and your role at Tune!FM – how did you get involved?

I am someone who enjoys doing both voice work and writing my own script for said voices, and my role at TuneFM couldn’t be any more perfect. I do the Radio Announcements over the radio for the quarterly reports, finding and writing small excerpts derived from local reports and news articles. I started getting involved here because of Work300, a unit that allows a student to pick a worksite to gain first-hand experience in the field of their chosen career.

3) What assessment pieces are you working on for work300?

For Work300, the assessment’s one has to do, are all negotiable, as the first part of the process of joining Work300 is to have both a host employer and an academic supervisor. Then, you discuss with both about a suitable assessment one can do whilst working. For me, my assignments were to keep a diary log of each week at the Worksite, and the second assignment was to do a creative piece that I developed and directed. For this, I had written, directed, edited and even voiced a small radio drama, called “The Daring Adventures of Nigel and Jules”, which should be airing living on the airwaves soon.

4) What does a regular day at Tune!FM entail for you?

A regular Monday at TuneFM is probably some of the most normal things I’ve had since lockdown began. Around 10 am, I get into the office, after signing in, of course, then set up my laptop, and then dive right into my work. I start by collecting around 25 articles, a mixture of both local and global news and events, as well as plugging in small businesses, University events and services, and even some of our Clubs and Societies. Then, I go about writing my script for each article, before going into Studio A to do the voice tracks. I normally do this around 12 pm, then at 12:30 pm, I take a lunch break for half an hour, before going to resume writing and recording my articles. Then, 3 pm comes and I’m pretty much finished by then. As for Tuesdays, starts like a Monday, 10 am arrival, but this time I go straight to Studio B and start doing ID work, creating and experimenting with Adobe Audition, doing a course provided to me by TuneFM on how to operate it, then, after some training, I go right into working on the production of my creative piece, taking my lunch break as usual, and when 3 pm comes, I clock out after a very productive, creative day.

5) Would you recommend others do Work300 Unit with Tune FM?

I would wholeheartedly recommend this unit to anyone who is very nervous about the working at a radio station but wanting to. I know where I’m from, it’s not a very common workplace to have available, but it is definitely fun, and my co-workers were both fantastic in looking out for me, and having a chat with me whilst eating lunch. As someone who hasn’t had a proper job due to committing to full-time study, I have to say that Work300, and TuneFM, have really made it a lot less nerve-wracking for me when seeking employment, and actually working, a problem I know some people out there are anxious about.

6) What do you plan to do after university?

I plan on seeking both paid and volunteer work at other radio stations, as well as work in the logistics of theatre, especially at my local town’s Joan Theatre. I hope to also be on the stage, however, I also have plans for developing an internet presence, using my newly acquired production experience to create projects and series online.

7) What was your favourite part of WORK 300?

The freedom I had in what I was evaluated on, and the work I got to do as my assessment, as the production on the creative piece was both a great learning experience, as well as being really fun to work on.

Check out this wonderful mini-series written by Patrick, called, ” The Adventures of Nigel and Jules”. There are six episodes in total!

Interested in doing WORK300  at Tune!FM, Send us an email at manager@tunefm.net !