Student Audio Competition

Entries will be accepted from November 15 – December 15 and winners will be showcased during an awards ceremony at the BEA Convention in Las Vegas in April. The Student Audio Competition accepts entries in the following categories:

SA1 – Air Personality:

This category is for on-air radio personalities. Examples should be reel-based, not exceed 5 minutes in length, and include talk sets and ramps into/out of songs, show segments (if applicable). Segments can be live (remote broadcast) or in-studio, or a combination of both. Submissions should be scoped with commercials/underwritings removed; but talk sets cannot be edited.

SA2 – Comedy or Drama:

The category is for the best comedy or drama segments. Examples include comedic features (can be part of a regularly running show) or segments from specialty shows such as morning shows. Drama includes radio dramas and radio-theater type productions. Submissions should be no longer than 7 minutes and should be scoped with commercials/underwritings removed, but content cannot be edited.

SA3 – Educational Program:

This category is considered the “public interest” category. Examples include newscasts, news shows, informative talk shows (such as forums or town-hall type meetings), and documentaries. Submissions should be no longer than 7 minutes and should be scoped with commercials/underwritings removed, but content cannot be edited.

SA4 – PSA, Promo, or Commercial:

This category is for the best PSA, Promo, or Commercial. Examples include originally-created Public Service Announcements that serve the public interest and have a specific call-to-action for a non-profit or social cause (campus announcements are not considered PSAs), original station, event or show promo spots, or commercials created for a product or service for a for-profit business. Underwriting announcements are not acceptable for this category. Submissions should be single spots or part of a campaign. Single spots should not exceed 1:30 and campaign considerations should not exceed 4:30.

SA5-Specialty Program & Podcasts

This category is for Podcasts, specialty shows or segments of programs. Examples include podcasts, specialty music shows, topical shows, entertainment shows such as weekly countdowns or movie/music review shows, or live studio music performance type shows (such as “unplugged”). Content is judged based on talent talk sets, so submissions with unoriginal music content (i.e., pre-recorded songs played as part of a “folk hour” or “metal hour”) that is not recorded/performed live in-studio should be scoped to exclude musical content. Submissions—including podcasts and podcast series–should be no longer than 10 minutes and should be scoped with commercials/underwritings removed, but content cannot be edited beyond the original production.

SA6 – Multimedia Sound Design:

This category represents sound works that are embedded within visual imagery. Areas include sound for television, sound for film/movies, sound for photographic slide shows, sound for multimedia art exhibitions, and sound for games/interactive media. ALL sound content must be directly associated to visual image and cannot be submitted on its own. The technical and aesthetic relevance of the sound component to the visual piece is being evaluated. Technical execution of the visual image is important for conveying the relation between sound and image. Length of sound works for this category cannot exceed 7 minutes. Note: please submit only stereo files. Multichannel files cannot be played back. In the case of sound design for an installation, the sound work(s) with still photographic images from perspectives of the installation would be acceptable.

SA7 – Sound Engineering and Production:

This category represents recorded music and audio content from the perspective of the sound engineer and/or producer. Works in this category include music recordings and live sound productions/recordings. Entries will be judged based on applied technical and aesthetic principles of sound engineering and production. Content and/or song structure along with musical performance of musicians is an inherent consideration and can impact the overall value and evaluation of the work. Submissions must be single songs/works only and cannot exceed 6 minutes. Additional songs from the same artist and/or producer/engineer must be submitted separately.

Please read the Student Competition Rules to verify that your entry meets all eligibility requirements for submission.