22.10.14 Update
Thanks everyone for sending in your CVs! We are now closing off applications, as we have filled the position.

We’re looking for a Studio Assistant to join us on a 3 month paid contract in our new Bristol studios for immediate start. This is a highly practical, hands on role for someone keen to get really involved in our eclectic, highly creative sound and music studios.

What you’ll be doing:

  • Foley prop unpacking, organisation and management
  • Studio and sound lab equipment organisation and management
  • Foley item design and build
  • Planning, creative and technical assistance with Foley recording sessions
  • Synth testing and recording
  • Studio tidying, organisation and maintenance
  • Creating/building/painting acoustic objects, baffles and props
  • Cable installation, management and testing
  • Technical assistance with live recording sessions
  • Technical assistance (and a cuppa!) for the creative team in their studios as needed

What you’ll preferably bring:

  • Knowledge of cabling audio work areas and workstations
  • Practical and hands-on approach to creative problem solving
  • Handy with tools – for example, you could put up some shelves or hammer a couple of planks together, or maybe pick up a paintbrush if needed
  • Knowledge/experience with electronics
  • Familiarity with Apple Mac workstations
  • Highly organised mindset
  • A knack for making yourself really, really useful
  • Hardworking and prepared to “muck in” and do whatever it takes to get the job done
  • Either some training or experience with live sound/Foley recording equipment and sessions, or a very strong interest to learn and upskill quickly on this
  • Able to problem solve with practical solutions for creative and technical scenarios ad hoc
  • Positive, helpful and friendly approach
  • Able to take direction and implement when necessary, as well as being able to work independently when the situation requires.

Interested? Here’s how to apply:

  • Make sure you have the email address jobs@radium-audio.com added to your email contacts/address book to reduce the likelihood that our auto-responder will land in your spam or junk mail
  • Send an email to jobs@radium-audio.com with subject header “1410 Studio Assistant (Your Name, Your Cellphone No)
  • In the email, explain why you’d be perfect for the job, what you’d bring to the team, and what you’d like to get out of working with us
  • Attach your CV as a pdf to your email. Use the filename convention “1410 Studio Assistant [Your Name]
  • Provide us with at least 1 and preferably 2 referees we can call if we want to follow up your application

Application Dates
We’re looking for someone to start asap, so if you think this is for you, get in touch with us right away!

 

Frequently Asked Questions

Many of these questions we’re asked repeatedly by phone and email every time we advertise a role, so we hope that by including them, it will make the application process simpler and more transparent for everyone. We also include some that are relevant for this specific role, so even if you’ve looked at some of our other job ads and you’ve read through FAQs before, you should still check through the below as some of it will be different depending on the role.

Section 1. Should I apply for this role?

Q. I don’t have much in the way of professional studio experience. Can I still apply?
A. Definitely! Maybe you haven’t worked in sound and music professionally but you devour knowledge and practice your craft obsessively every spare minute, and you’re confident you can bring a lot of what we’re looking for to the table and step up where you need to. Maybe you’ve been studying a relevant course and working hard on your skills in your downtime, and you’re now looking to get a break into the industry. Maybe you’ve already been doing this somewhere else, and you like the sound of being on our team. If you have many of the things we’ve asked for, and you’re willing to do whatever it takes to learn quickly what you don’t know then give it a go!

Q. I don’t really fit with the role you’ve described, but I’d love to be a part of your team. Can I apply anyway and just tell you what I CAN do, on the offchance I might catch your attention for this or another role?
A. We’d really prefer if you didn’t. We do tend to receive a lot of submissions and we really want to focus our time and attention on those which are right for the specific role we need to fill immediately. We don’t hire without advertising the opportunity publicly so if you’ve signed up on the Radium Careers page to be notified of new opportunities, you’ll know immediately when we do have something that might suit you. Be very sure to tailor your application to the specific role on offer, don’t send us generic letters, CVs, showreels or similar, as those who use the application opportunity to demonstrate in very clear terms they could be right for the particular role in question will have a big advantage over those who don’t make that effort.

Q. Is this a real job?
A. Yes, this is a real job.

Q. Much of what you’ve talked about for this role is very practical and hands on in the studio environment. That’s not really my thing, but I’m highly creative and I’d love the chance to show you what I can do on Logic, Protools, Cubase, Reason, Ableton, Fruity Loops or similar. Can I still apply?
A. For this role, we’re not looking for someone who is expert at creatively wielding a mouse in front of a computer screen, and it won’t advance your application to focus heavily on those types of skills and experience, albeit it’s fine to include them in your CV. Read through what we’ve said about the role, and think carefully about skills and experience you have that are relevant for what we’re looking for in this position. To be seriously considered, you’ll need to focus your application around the role we’re offering.

Q. Is this a paid position? If so, how much?
A. Yes, this is a full time inhouse paid position on a 3 month contract basis.

Q. OK so this is a 3 month contract. If things work out, is there a chance it could be extended or made permanent?
A. We’ve offered a 3 month contract on this because with our new Bristol studios opening, there is a lot of practical organisation and management to be done, and we need an extra pair of hands and a sound head to help with that. After that initial work is done we don’t know whether we’ll need someone ongoing or whether we’ll be fine to handle it all with our existing permanent team, so we couldn’t say either way right now. Still, it’s worth mentioning that one of our current team had his initial opportunity with us in this exact role, and he’s a highly valued permanent team member today, 2 years after he first started with us supplying endless rounds of caffeine for everyone and organising our London Greenwich studios to within an inch of our lives. As with anything, given the right person and circumstances there is always a possibility that further opportunities can develop.

Q. I don’t live near your studios right now, but I’d be willing to relocate if I got the job. Can I still apply?
A. Yes you can, however you will need to be available at very short notice for interview and to commence the position, so you’ll need to have a plan in place to manage that. Realistically you would need to either already live or very quickly relocate to within commutable distance of our Bristol studios to take up the role.

Q. I don’t live near your Bristol studios but I’m within commutable distance of London. Can I apply for your London studios?
A. We don’t have any positions in London at present, we will advertise these when they become available. This opportunity is based at our newly opened Bristol studios.

Q. I don’t live in the UK, but I’m an EU citizen and I have the right to move to the UK and take employment without any restrictions. Can I still apply?
A. A. Yes you can. However, bear in mind that you will need to be available at very short notice for interview or to commence the position, so you’ll need to have a plan in place to manage that, and to cover your own travel expenses. Realistically you would need to either already live or very quickly relocate to within commutable distance of our Bristol studios to take up the role.

Q. I don’t live in the UK, and I also live outside the EU. Can I still apply?
A. You will need to demonstrate to us with your initial application that you have the unrestricted right already in place to live and work in the UK, as we are not able to assist with immigration issues and work permit applications. However, bear in mind that you will need to be available at very short notice for interview or to commence the position, so you’ll need to have a plan in place to manage that, and to cover your own travel expenses. Realistically you would need to either already live or very quickly relocate to within commutable distance of our Bristol studios to take up the role.

Q. I don’t live near the studio, but I’d be willing to work remotely. Can I still apply?
A. Sadly, no. For this position, we’re really looking for someone to join the inhouse team. This is a practical hands on role and can only be carried out onsite at our Bristol studios.

Q. I’ve applied with you before and not been successful. Is it pointless to apply again?
A. Not at all, give it another shot! As long as you fit with the role as we’ve described, and you follow the current instructions for submission, definitely do apply again. A few of our team have made unsuccessful applications before finally gaining a position.

Q. I’m not right for this role, but could I apply for an internship or some work experience, or just spend some time in studio observing?
A. We’re often working on projects for clients which are highly confidential, so while we don’t want to be anti-social, mostly we try to avoid having observers in studio who are not directly working on projects in progress. Sometimes we do have opportunities for internships or work experience, and we ALWAYS advertise these as it has happened in the past that the occasional intern has come in, blown us away with energy, commitment, talent and usefulness, and progressed eventually to a permanent position on the team. So we want to throw the net as wide as we can. You can sign up on our Radium Careers page to be notified of any opportunities that come up.

Q. I’m not really right for this role, but can I just send you my work speculatively? Do you have other opportunities happening soon and will you remember me when they come up?
A. Given that we’re expanding and opening new studios, we will definitely have further opportunities to come soon. We wouldn’t say “no, don’t send us your work” because we take it as a compliment that you’d choose to share it with us. But realistically, we’re flat out most of the time and while we review speculative applications occasionally, given the volume we receive it’s difficult to make an ongoing commitment to review all of them. Also, if you’re sending us a general email about your work, you’re essentially shooting blind. Whereas if you’re responding to a specific callout we’ve made, you’ll be able to shape what you send us so that it fits with what we’re looking for at that time, and we do commit to reviewing EVERY submission when it’s for a role we’ve advertised. You’re more likely to grab our attention if you submit something we’ve specifically asked for, in the way that we’ve asked for it, at the time we’re looking for it.

Section 2 . Ok I’ve decided I’m going to apply, and I’m preparing my submission ….

Q. I’ve been looking for a job in sound and music for a while, and I have a standard submission with covering email and CV that I usually send off to prospective employers. Is it ok if I just send you that?
A. You will be at a disadvantage in the application process if you haven’t shaped your submission to fit the role on offer.

Q. Can I be creative with the format of my application? The way I like doing things is different to what you’ve asked for.
A. We don’t want to be unnecessarily rigid, but given that we do tend to receive a lot of material to organise and review, and your application gives us an idea not just about your creative and technical skills, but also about your ability to follow team instructions correctly and organise your own work and team work, it will be to your advantage to work within the submission guidelines we’ve given.

Q. Is it an advantage to get my application in really early?
A. For this role yes it is. We would like to find someone to start working with us as quickly as possible, and so as soon as we find that person we will discontinue the application process.

Q. When do applications close?
A. Applications will close as soon as we find the right person, which we’re hoping to do quite quickly. We will announce here and on Facebook when that happens.

Section 3: I’ve sent in my submission. What happens now?

Q. Ok so I’ve applied for the position following all the guidelines given. What happens next?
A. We review and start separating out applications for potential shortlisting. Those people will then be contacted by phone to discuss next steps. Depending on how many applications we receive and review, it may take some time to compile the shortlist, so don’t be discouraged if you don’t hear from us immediately. Also, we post updates on Facebook, so we’ll let everyone know when we’re getting close to a shortlist and some follow up phone calls. For this role, we’re looking to hire quickly, so we’ll be getting in touch pretty promptly upon receiving individual applications which look like they could be right for this position.

Q. Did you get my email?
A. You should receive an auto –responder from us confirming receipt of your email. If you haven’t:

  • Check your spam or junk mail in case it landed there
  • Check you have only sent your submission to jobs@radium-audio.com and not directed to or included any other address
  • If neither of the above applies, email us again without any attachments or links with “NO RECEIPT RECEIVED” inserted at the end of your original subject line. We’ll then check our autoresponder to be sure it’s working properly, and let you know if we received your mail.

Q. Should I phone just for a quick chat to follow up my application?
A. Please don’t be offended, however due to volume of enquiries we tend to get, we’d really prefer if you didn’t. If we can see what we’re looking for in what you’ve sent us, we’ll definitely be phoning you!

Q. What do you really look for when you go through all the applications?
A. For this role, we’re looking for evidence that you have as much as possible of the types of skills or experience we’ve detailed in the job advert. You don’t have to have bags of experience, but we hope there’s something there to show us that this type of work is something you’re already interested in and have some aptitude for, and have explored given your personal circumstances, even before this opportunity came up. We also then look to see whether there’s common ground there with our own philosophy and approach.

Q. Will you let me know about the outcome regardless of whether or not I’ve been successful?
A. Yes, once the recruitment process is complete applicants who didn’t hear from us by phone will receive a standard email notification. Also you can keep up with progress on our Facebook and Radium Careers pages where we will post recruitment status updates as they become available for any advertised role.

Thanks and good luck – we’re looking forward to your submissions!