By Alyssa Diaz
The Communication Department at Barry brought the Avid Learning Partner Program (ALP) this past March to its first cohort of video production students. This program has since expanded, offering accelerated courses for busy working professionals. A second cohort from the global network completed the course in May and a third followed suit this past September.
Barry partnered with TelevisaUnivision to provide their employees with training to get Avid-certified.
Avid Technology created Avid Media Composer, a non-linear editing software for videos and films. It offers advanced tools to improve the visual and aural quality of your finished products.
The media center in Garner Hall is one of only a handful of Avid Training institutes worldwide to provide both academic students and working professionals with training on this nationally known video program.
This program was created by John Musulin, the media center manager and Avid-certified Instructor, Dr. Vicente Berdayes, communication department chair, along with Ed Garcia, a senior media manager at TelevisaUnivision.
“This Avid program’s main purpose for Univision is to enhance overall knowledge of Avid editing systems—we utilize over 400 Avid stations. It’s another caveat as employees feel and deserve to improve on their skills, with the assistance of tuition reimbursement programs,” said Garcia. “Berdayes and Musulin had the vision to join forces with Avid and become the only Avid certified school in Miami.”
To receive academic credit, Barry students must enroll in COM 356 Editing Digital Media for the whole 16-week semester and attend classes once a week for three hours.
“Nowadays with social media and everyone editing their own videos, it will be a plus for anyone to take this course,” said Garcia.
For working professionals in the industry, their certification can be completed over five days to fit busy schedules. The program is currently offering the MC 101 and MC 110 courses required to become an Avid-certified user for Media Composer. It's been divided into two eight-hour days over one week and three eight-hour days over the following week.
Anybody can choose either one.
If a Barry student can afford it, they can opt out of the academic class and take the professional one.
“Technology is always changing and for me, personally, it not only benefited my career, but I’ve been wanting to get certified in more applications for personal growth as well. It was a win/win for me,” said Giselle Robles, a media manager at TelevisaUnivision who took the course. “Avid is such an essential part of our organization that I have recommended this program to various coworkers.”
Engineers, media managers, producers, photographers, and camera operators make up a large portion of the class attendees. But even if you're not a video editor, Avid's program can help you stand out and give a strong impression on a prospective employer.
“Avid is the industry standard,” said Musulin. “If you work for an individual company, they might use Adobe Premiere or Final Cut Pro. As you get into a large company like Univision, over 95 percent of it is Avid. It’s a valuable thing to learn.”
The Avid Training Curriculum will advance even more next year. Barry will add the MC 201 and MC 210 courses if individuals desire to continue to the advanced level of Avid-certified professional.
Starting next academic year, Barry plans to make the 200-level classes available to anyone in the world who is interested.
Musulin said by providing the same classes in Spanish, Avid will be able to reach a broader market and bring more professionals to campus so they can enhance their skills.
“In film and television, the Avid certification is highly regarded because when you get certified, you’re learning a concrete skill,” he said. “Film studios and television networks know that if they hire someone that’s certified they can start utilizing them immediately.”
Students who desire to become Avid-certified and improve their editing abilities may gain a higher salary or a promotion.
Whether you’re a communications major or enjoy content creating, students should consider challenging themselves.
For more information and to sign up for the next course, email John Musulin at jmusulin@barry.edu.
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