Radio at Sunderland
We take radio seriously: we offer the UK's greatest diversity of radio modules and a great environment in which to study, but we also look to the wider world. We are a member of the RadioCentre, the Community Media Association, the Student Radio Association and a founding member of the Radio Studies Network and we also work with the Radio Academy regionally and nationally. We have excellent links with broadcasters and radio companies throughout the UK and beyond, offering you the opportunity to meet employers and take part in media initiatives.
Our students have production facilities that are the envy of many academic establishments. The David Puttnam Media Centre is one of the UK's most advanced centres for training media students with industry standard facilities. The 2007/2008 National Student Survey results showed that our students are the most satisfied students in the North East and the 18th most satisfied in the UK, from a list of more than 140 institutions. The David Puttnam Media Centre received a £1.5m upgrade in the autumn of 2009 and our facilities now boast:
- Five radio studios, including a drama studio, a transmission suite for community radio station 107 Spark FM and a 20 station digital audio post-production area complete with four voiceover booths. Each studio has: RCS playout technology; 16 SADIE high-end audio editing work stations; 20 Tascam stereo portable recording devices; and Adobe Audition mix controller.
- Professional recording equipment
- ISDN lines that link us to studios and stations all over the country
- State-of-the-art lecture theatres and seminar rooms
- Broadcast Journalism Newsroom with 17 workstations plus an Avid Utility server, Sky feed
- Suite of eight seminar rooms fully equipped with: audio visual technologies; internet connection; dual platform laptops; and dvd/vhs/cd playout systems. Two rooms have the above equipment with the addition of Blu-ray playout
- A digital drama and production studio
- 203 seat cinema with full HD projection, 7.1 surround sound facility and even the capability to play 3D feature films
- Two broadcast quality TV Studios
- A green room with changing area and shower room
- New media suite
- Modern, attractive library on campus
- Creativitiworks, our business support unit for creative enterprise
- We are part of the BBC Education and Communities Partnership: Connect and Create
David Puttnam Media Centre 3D tour
You can now tour the David Puttnam Media Centre online through our 3D tour. Click the link on the right to access the tour, or you can download it from the iPhone AppStore.
Spark
Spark is our multi-award winning radio and television station, and magazine. We broadcast from the David Puttnam Media Centre to Sunderland on 107FM, and to the North East and the world at www.sparksunderland.com
Since 2009 we’ve picked up a host of awards, including Best Station in the North East (Radio Academy Nations and Regions), and Best Community Engagement (Student Radio Association), and we’ve one both of those no less than twice.
Most recently we’ve won another three national student television awards to add to our cabinet.
We’ve just invested another seventy five thousand pounds in three more Spark studios, and you’ll find that broadcasting and publishing on Spark will be at the heart of your Sunderland Media experience.
