Jobs for the Major
How this major affects a job search
You've got a music degree, which means Fortune 500 companies are going to be breaking down your door and throwing high-paying jobs at you. You'll also win a Nobel Peace Prize and get your face printed on currency.
Ha. Just kidding.
Get ready to hear a lot of jokes like that, by the way.
Unlike other professions that see a rise and fall in employment, music majors often find themselves in the seemingly static predicament of unemployment, as their education is typically in such a specific niche that it doesn't prepare them for many other industries.
Yes, this is bad news, but you shouldn't freak out about it. Just like many other jobs, who you know is just as important than what you know, if not more.
Building a professional network is easier in the field of music because everything you do involves people. Whether you perform or edit music, look at all work as a chance to build up your social cred in the music game. Every person who hears about your work is another person that could promote you.
One of the best skills you'll earn with this degree is how to handle rejection and adversity.
Music majors are going to get the door slammed in their faces and will likely often hear, "Please stop playing in front of my store" for the beginning of their career, so it helps to pick up your bruised ego and build a thick skin. That way, you can keep playing your music right in that store owner's face until you're discovered...somehow.
Common Career Fields
Audio Production: Years ago, music was played and recorded live. Over the years, the refining process has become more and more important. These days, the production side of the business is vital, and many musically gifted people find themselves doing this as a career. Especially with the meteoric rise of electronic music and other production-heavy genres, artists rely on the studio side of things a bit more. Obviously, this is true for some genres (dubstep) more than others (blues).
Composing: Composing music can be a mammoth endeavor because it means bringing many different instruments into one purpose and sound. If you look at music as either creating or reproducing, this would fall into the first category, as you will be starting from nothing and ending with a polished piece of music. We'd like to tell you this is an easy job because one of the most famous composers (Beethoven) did it when he was deaf...but then again, he was a genius, so yeah.
Critiquing: Your degree in music will show potential employers that you do, in fact, understand music. This profession can serve two very important functions for musical artists, with the first being early critiquing. For any artist or group that has recently put together some music, they'll want feedback to see what others will think so they can alter the music to fit their audience. Second is doing post-production critiques. This includes writing articles that say whether an album is worth listening to.
Education: This is one of the two most popular careers for music majors. After you've learned your way around the bass and treble clefs, you can go on to teach others. From four-year-olds who want to learn the piano to masters looking to refine their craft, the service of music teachers can be enlisted at any level of playing. At the lower levels of education, you'll typically be tasked with teaching students how to play a wider variety of instruments, including woodwinds, brass, strings, and percussion. At the higher levels, more refined knowledge in a specific instrument or style will be required.
Film/Television: This is a great way for music majors to be in a world that doesn't revolve solely around music. Putting together a score for a show or film can be immensely challenging, since you have to capture the feel of the scene that you're adding music to. If you're looking for a concrete example of what you'll be doing, picture Peter from the movie Forgetting Sarah Marshall. If you're good, you can even do your own rock opera.
Lyrics: Are you a poetic genius? Sometimes what's being said is just as important as the way it sounds. Writing lyrics is a good way to be in the music business without actually performing yourself. Many songs combine beautiful instrumentation and lyrics and become smash hits, like "Bohemian Rhapsody," which was written solely by Freddie Mercury and performed by his band Queen. You could also be a part of a songwriting team. Too many cooks can spoil the pot, however; Justin Bieber's "Baby" had six different people listed as contributing writers. Just think about that for a second.
Performing: This is another very common goal for many music majors. Performers from lots of different genres, like Louis Armstrong, Michael Jackson, and The Beatles, all used their talent and performed their music for a living (and did a particularly good job of it). There are many ups and downs in this profession, since your success is dependent completely on the audience. As long as people like your music, success will follow.
Current unemployment of the major
7.3%Percentage of majors who get a higher degree after college
41%Stats obtained from this source.