What Are the Different Types of TV Career Opportunities?

TV career opportunities can include everything from television personalities or actors to underwriters, lawyers, and accountants. A job candidate should examine his or her skill set to find the TV career opportunities most appropriate for him or her. Some positions will require specific training, while others are entry-level positions that require no previous experience or formal education. Actors, for example, do not necessarily need specific training, though many actors do attend some sort of acting classes or other acting education programs. Directors also may not need specific training, though most are students of the industry and have a solid understanding of how television programs are made.

Script supervisors are people who organize each draft of the television program's script and ensure the most recent script makes it into the hands of the director, producer, actors, and other relevant workers on set. Other TV career opportunities include writing jobs, such as script writers, editors, and proofreaders; producers, who oversee production and sometimes even invest money into the television program; camera operators, artistic directors, wardrobe staff, and hair and make-up artists.

Some of these TV career opportunities will require specific training. A hair and make-up artist, for example, will usually need years of experience or formal training to be considered for a position. Script writers usually need some sort of writing education, or exceptional talent and experience in the field. Many writers start as proofreaders, interns, or assistants before they can find TV career opportunities as writers. A writer may work for a fictional television program or a news program, educational program, documentary, or any other program aired for entertainment or informational purposes.

Set designers are people who build sets, change them on the fly, and otherwise create visual effects to help set a scene. Experience with carpentry is desired for such a position, as is a keen eye for creative construction and visual imagery. Set designers often work closely with lighting specialists who are hired to properly light a set so it looks dramatic, realistic, or otherwise visually appealing. Wardrobe managers may manage and create clothing for a television program; garments may need to be tailored to specific actors, and changes to the garments may need to be made during the process of filming. Grips are rigging technicians who hang lights, fix sound equipment, work with set designers to build sets, hold various pieces of equipment during filming, and move various pieces of equipment carefully and quickly.