WEEK     JOB: RADIO DJ

LOCATION: KITCHENER, ONTARIO

EMPLOYER: DAVE FM 107.5

WAGE: $39,360 YEAR (VARIES WITH SIZE OF CATCHMENT AREA) [Source: BLS]

INDUSTRY IQ:

• DJ or Deejay stands for “disc jockey” and was first used to describe radio announcers who would introduce and play popular gramophone records.

• During World War I, armies had their own radio stations that would sometimes get ambushed by enemy forces and then be used to fool opposing soldiers.

WHAT I LEARNED: Socialize more, study less?!

Carlos, a Dave FM radio host: “You’ve heard it a million times—it’s not what you know, it’s who you know. Stay in touch with the people you go to school with, ’cause those are the people who are going to get you jobs. Get involved, volunteer, talk to people, make calls, make contacts. It’s not so much about putting in a résumé. You get a million people putting in a résumé someplace, but what you gotta do is create a personal relationship with somebody—that’s how you get a job. That’s what’s going to get you where you want to go.”