SAE / New York City

At a Glance
Name: SAE/New York City Contact: Udo Hoppenworth, senior VP/director of New York Operations Major Courses of Study: Audio Engineer, Multimedia Producer Degree Offered: Diploma program Accreditation: NYS Department of Education Main Technology Platforms: SSL, Neve, and other analog and digital consoles; Pro Tools; other major technology systems Tuition: $14,800 for nine-month, 900-contact-hour program Financial Assistance: Sallie Mae (SLM), school-based financing available.

SAE opened its first U.S. location in Times Square in April 1999. Bringing SAE’s 25-year globally successful formula of media arts education to the capital of the largest media market in the world was an instant success: Of the three SAE schools currently open in the U.S., the New York location has the largest student body, with approximately 200 students enrolled. Each student receives intensive, comprehensive instruction from a faculty with one of the lowest student-to-teacher ratios in the industry.

“This is one of the things that has set SAE apart in all of our locations around the world,” observes Udo Hoppenworth, SAE’s senior VP/director of New York operations. “The ratio varies according to the type of class, but it is usually around 15-to-one in group work, and it’s always one-to-one on individual student projects.”

New York’s SAE school illustrates the institution-wide concept of tailoring curricula to particular markets. The Manhattan facility incorporates two distinct technical career tracks: the Audio Engineer program and the Multimedia Producer program. The Audio Engineer program is the foundation course for SAE worldwide, and has produced the majority of its graduates over the years. Thanks to its unique position as the locus of new-media technology and business, New York is also the site for the first SAE Multimedia Producer program in the U.S.

Incorporating the entire palette of media elements, including text, digital video, animation and digital audio, as well as formats such as Flash and various DVD-authoring tools, the Multimedia Producer course addresses practical applications of multimedia technology in fields such as advertising, communications and education. Using Silicon Graphics workstations and widely used programs such as Macromedia Director to develop their skills, SAE Multimedia Producer graduates are ready to take a wide variety of projects into the real world.

SAE’s Audio Engineer program in New York has the same core curriculum as is offered in other SAE locations, which is augmented by a faculty that understands the diversity of the U.S. music market and by guest lecturers, such as Eddie Kramer and Phil Ramone. Students also learn aspects of career management and contracts, as well as financial issues related to the music business. In the 24 studios and labs in the 10,000-square-foot SAE/New York facility, students work on high-end equipment, including SSL and Neve consoles, as well as Pro Tools and other nonlinear platforms.

“They say that in New York, if you can make it here, you can make it anywhere,” observes Mark Martin, SAE’s director of North American marketing and expansion. “At SAE, we provide students with access to both a lot of knowledge and the real world.”

Tom Misner: “The high quality of education at SAE is consistent and more than meets industry requirements. Sony Music alone has taken 13 of our graduates, while many companies return to request a second or third employee from our pool of graduates.”

Students of SAE/New York have been instructed by such industry greats as Phil Ramone and Eddie Kramer. Graduates of SAE/New York are currently employed at The Cutting Room, Electric Lady Studios, The Hit Factory, Quad Studios, Sound Trax and Avatar Studios, to name just a few.

The student population mirrors New York’s vast conglomeration of races and nationalities. Many SAE/New York students come from other countries to study in the U.S., creating a blend of cultures that lends itself to a well-rounded learning experience. •