51ĀŅĀ×

CNBC Television Director David Jones says that being able to work as a paid employee at a PBS member television station while he was studying telecommunications in college at 51ĀŅĀ× was crucial to launching his career.

ā€œWhen I put on my resumĆ© that I was a paid, hired employee of a professional TV station, that showed potential employers that I did the leg work, and I understood what I had to do. Working at WOUB was critical. It gave me a head start when I first got out of school.ā€

Jones grew up near Athens in Jackson, Ohio. He wasnā€™t sure what he wanted to study when he got to 51ĀŅĀ×. But it didnā€™t take long for him to figure things out and decide to be a telecommunications major.

ā€œI probably shouldnā€™t admit this,ā€ said Jones laughing. ā€œBut I thought that a television production looked like a job I could do and not have to wear a suit!ā€

Jones started working at WOUB during his freshman year. He got involved operating studio cameras and eventually directing newscasts.

ā€œIn my junior and senior years, I stayed over school breaks and got paid to work at WOUB. That paid experience was invaluable.ā€

When Jones graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Telecommunications in June of 1986, he was hired as a production assistant at WBNS in Columbus.

ā€œIt was an entry level position where I was floor managing and running the teleprompter,ā€ said Jones. ā€œI eventually worked my way up and was directing the late-night movie show, Nite Owl Theatre."

But Jones wanted to do more directing. So, after three years in Columbus, he moved on. Jones worked as a director in Oklahoma, Illinois, Iowa, Michigan, Ohio, and Rhode Island, before landing in Hartford, Connecticut in 1998.

ā€œI was living halfway between Hartford and New York City,ā€ said Jones. ā€œSo, I started doing freelance work in the city. One of my freelance jobs was with MSNBC and that led to a full-time position at CNBC.ā€

Currently Jones is the director for Fast Money and Options Action along with CNBC's online programming portfolio.

ā€œI love directing television news style programming,ā€ said Jones. ā€œIn college, directing WOUBā€™s nightly news program, NewsWatch, was the brass ring. Iā€™m so thankful I got the opportunity to do that. It prepared me for where I am today.ā€

To learn more about WOUB, visit woub.org.