Many music college applicants, undergraduates and parents often wonder whether a music degree will ultimately pay off. For most of them, the choice to pursue musical studies is largely driven by their passion and not the security of a job at the end of their education. A lot of parents will seek advice from music teachers and experts to find out whether their children can make a living through music.
However, there’s good news! A recent study shows that the statistics are actually pretty favorable. Peter Miksza and Laura Hime sought to find out the career paths and financial status of undergraduate music education alumni. They really wanted to find out how many students with music degrees were currently working in their profession.
They analyzed two specific groups for the study – students with a degree in Music Education, and
those with a degree in Music Performance.If you aren’t sure what the difference is, Music Education students are primarily trained to
teach in the public school system, although many end up going into careers that include private
school teaching and conducting regional youth ensembles.Music Performance majors, on the other hand, are those that majored in a specific instrument,
usually in classical or jazz disciplines, although popular music and even hip-hop have now become
majors at some colleges. Via Music School Central
They surveyed 1,434 respondents drawn from private and public universities, liberal arts colleges as well as institutions dedicated solely to the performing arts in America.
Their study did consider many variables as part of the outcome of this study. Some of the most
important variables include the length of time after graduation that a musician found work,
whether that musician worked multiple jobs (say teaching and performance, for example), and how
fitting the job was in comparison to what the student was looking for. Via Music School Central
Here are some of the highlights of the study findings:
According to this study, over 50% of the students in the music performance group found work
relevant to their major within four months of graduation.Additionally, more than 75% of the music education group also found work within four months of
graduation.Ultimately, more than 1 out of every 2 of all the respondents stated that performance or
education was their jobs. Via Music School Central
Based on the fact that only 27 percent of college graduates actually end up working in a field directed to their area of study, these statistics are actually very encouraging.
Another noteworthy finding was that 1 out of 5 of respondents in the performance group found teaching jobs in public schools, meaning that those who focused on performance also got opportunities to teach.
You’re probably very curious to find out what they found out about how much music professionals earned right out of college:
Those in the music education group reported annual income between $20,000 – $60,000, with a small number making over $60,000. The authors noted that although the average in this group would be lower than the national average salary of $56,000 for music education teachers, he concluded most musicians wouldn’t attain the average salary until they are further along into their careers.
For music performance majors, the salaries were wider in range – although many reported starting annual incomes in the $20,000 area, some did make more than $60,000. Via Music School Central
The study reveals something that would be really helpful for all concerned – music majors are not at any disadvantage compared to their counterparts in non-music majors. In fact, one may argue that if music is their passion, then they could actually be at an advantage over those that take courses for which they are not enthusiastic.
Still, someone may argue that 50% is too low a number of music majors that find work within four months of their graduation. Here’s what Bill Zuckerman would say to them:
First, some students fall out-of-love with the idea of being a musician for a career after graduating college…As such, these students are either less motivated to find work OR they have decided to change professions after college.
Secondly, many music performance students choose to attend graduate school after completing an undergraduate degree. Because of this, their focus isn’t to find work, but rather, to focus on studies….
Thirdly, as I mentioned previously, this percentage is fairly comparable to alumni of majors outside of music performance and music education.
Fourth, and finally, it takes time to build a great music career.
One of my good friends from college, for example, spent years performing gigs as a soloist and
teaching throughout New York City before becoming the newest member of one of the world’s lauded
chamber groups, Imani Winds… Via Music School Central
Featured Image: Image Credit
Photo of a family of graduates goes viral. “It’s been a blessing.” https://t.co/B34ECt7q69 pic.twitter.com/OQvlfm0WML
— Good Morning America (@GMA) March 20, 2016
top 5 reasons why fresh graduates unemployed pic.twitter.com/LYC9rR4rWa
— Ameer Faris (@AmeerFaris) March 18, 2016
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