Fort Hays State University has offered radio classes since 1950. It has alumni in radio at stations across America.
Alumni have been recognized with Country Music Awards, as “Sportscaster of the Year” for Kansas, with Kansas Association of Broadcasters Awards for “Radio Personality of the Year,” the “Lifetime Achievement Award” and other major awards.
Alumni work as on-air personalities, in radio news, sports, talk, sales, operations, engineering, and management.
Alumni not only work in radio, some even own radio stations!
Students interested in a career in radio major in Information Networking and Telecommunications (INT) with a Concentration in Media Studies. Radio students can take a variety of emphasis electives that focus on radio.
A student can start in radio knowing little about the profession or may have experience from working in a hometown station.
Fort Hays State University’s KFHS Radio was one of the first college stations in the world to transmit over the Internet. It can be heard worldwide on KFHS.net.
Any FHSU student can participate on air at KFHS. Media Studies students take leadership roles in KFHS serving as managers, program directors, promotion directors, etc. Some of these positions are paid!
Students can take INT 342 Campus Radio Station Operations, offered in the fall, where they not only learn the history of radio, legal aspects of radio, and current trends, but they also are required to do weekly on-air shifts, 3 hours the first part of the semester, 6 hours the second part and learn to operate a station.
KFHS follows FCC regulations regarding programming to accustom students to working in a professional environment.
KFHS students participants are pretty much free, in consultation with the radio station manager and advisor, to program the station.
Students are encouraged to apply for professional internships, based on their skill and grades. FHSU constantly has students who are working for Hays based Eagle Communications. Students also intern and work in other stations.
Students interested in radio can take a series of audio production courses and earn a Music Technology Emphasis
Students interested in radio can take a series of sports announcing classes including those taught by “Kansas Sportscaster of the Year” and “Voice of the Tigers,” Gerard Wellbrock. Other FHSU full and part-time faculty have experience working professionally in radio.
Radio shows, spots, and PSA’s produced by FHSU students are eligible for entry into the annual college competition sponsored by the Kansas Association of Broadcasters and the National Broadcast Society. FHSU students are consistent winners!!!
