High competition for jobs and low turnover
Competition for television presenter jobs is high because there are more students graduating with film and television qualifications than the number of vacancies available.
Television presenters tend to stay in the job for a long time so there are few new positions.
According to the Census, 210 television presenters worked in New Zealand in 2018.
Increased job chances with a broad range of skills and experience, and a social media following
The more multi-skilled you are, the higher the chance you have of securing work in television. Few people work full time as television presenters, most work part time and do other television-related work as well. For example, they may work in roles such as journalism, producing, editing, acting, directing, make-up and wardrobe and technical support.
Any acting and film directing experience, for example in the 48-hour film festival, is helpful and should be included in a portfolio to show potential employers. It's sometimes possible to get into the industry by presenting a web series or YouTube channel and creating an online social media presence with a large following. Being a subject matter expert for presenting specific subjects is also useful.
Television presenters work in public and private companies
Television presenters usually work for:
- Māori television
- TVNZ, New Zealand's state broadcaster
- private broadcasting companies such as MediaWorks
- television production companies.
