I have been a DJ at OwlRadio since my start at FAU last fall and have felt the same thing many new students feel when I went through orientation. I also remember hearing the music playing in the Breezeway and wondering where in the world the source was. However, when my orientation leader took me to the University Center, she also took us to the second floor, to a little room called 207D – where OwlRadio is located.

My orientation leader said to us, “This station broadcasts 24/7 in the Breezeway, all over the world online and it is completely student-run. If you’d like to DJ here, and play whatever you want, stop by one day and let them know.” I was shocked by this proposition _- I could DJ? I could share my eclectic and mind-opening music with all 20,000 or so students on campus? I was immediately intrigued, but also a little hesitant. I was a freshman, completely new to college life, and unsure of something that sounded too good to be true.

After a few weeks of thinking it over, I finally let my curiosity get the best of me and I marched right up to room 207D of the University Center. The door to the radio station was open, and I could hear rambunctious conversations and energetic music coming from within. I stepped in, shy, and was greeted by the station manager at the time. I told him I wished to be a DJ, and he told me, “Great! We’re looking for more DJs. We’re having a big training meeting for new DJs next weekend.”

Happily surprised, I got the details, went to the meeting and I have been riding the airways ever since.That was last September. Since then, I have visited the station almost every day, whether it was to help out, do homework, critique pre-released and newly released music, design promotions, or give away promotional materials, CDs and tickets to FAU students.

I started as a DJ for a foreign music show once a week, volunteering several hours a week, and now I hold a manager position – the most enjoyable job I have ever had. The station has changed a lot since then. The management has been completely rearranged and redone, the station itself has been refurbished, and the possibility of airing on an FM feed is at our eager fingertips. OwlRadio is still completely student-run and student-composed (with a professor or two thrown in), and DJs can still play whatever they want. As long as the content is “clean,” that is.

The best thing about OwlRadio is that it is not just for DJs. Not everyone there is a communications major, you can experience managing, mixing, sound engineering, electronics engineering, business relations and so much more. I am an English major and joined only to share the music that brings me joy, but I have learned so much more, and I am ready for so much more in my life.

OwlRadio is not just a fun place to hang out and spin music, it is also a place to learn, gain life experience, rack up volunteer hours and even add to your resume.

You can also check out OwlRadio’s website (with a live Internet feed) at http://owlradio.fau.edu