Whenever one wishes to pursue a university or college degree it is useful to do research about the field one wishes to get into.
A music degree is not useless but it doesn’t guarantee a successful career in anything other than teaching. A music career outside teaching can be difficult due to the scarcity of paying work and the uncertainty that comes with this career. Making a full time sustainable income will difficult especially for someone with very little experience.
Your competition will include people with music degrees and people without them because what really matters is who makes the better music. Furthermore being an independent musician is one of the hardest jobs in the world because breaking into the music industry is no easy task.
This is a career for people that are actually passionate about music and not for people that want to land a job that can offer them a sustainable income the immediately they graduate from school.
If you’re looking to have an easy route to making a living, a music degree is not the way to go.
Average income
The average income that most musicians earn is not sustainable because most of their work is on a commission basis.
Say you just started a band and have your first gig, the money you’ll be able to make from that gig will have to sustain you until your next gig.
Which means you’ll have to deal with an erratic inflow of money.
Starting a band is not the only career choice but it’s the common theme for most music graduates.
Others usually drift off to teaching which can be the easier route to making an income that is much more dependable and less uncertain.
The music career is one that you would financially thrive in if you get into the right industry. But getting into the right industry is not easy.
Because It can be highly competitive and highly unpredictable.
Reputation and experience
Thriving as a musician looking to find lucrative work will come down to how experienced one is.
Being fresh out of music school and getting into work is not at all promised,
the best thing you’ll have to do is gain some experience and sharpen your skill even after 4 years of education.
This can be done through an internship.
The downside is if you don’t have the experience and reputation to go with your music degree it will be extremely difficult for you to find work and
Taking on the independent musician route is not at all easy especially for a person that is looking for an income to live off.
This is why a music degree is no guarantee that one will have a successful music career.
If you’re passionate about your music then you can stay the course and keep going until you finally land some work,
but this will mean having a separate income source to support and provide your well being.
This can be a challenge if you don’t have another source of income.
Skillset
The music industry is an industry that doesn’t thrive on degrees and formal qualifications it all comes down to how skilled a person is.
A person with a music degree may have an advantage but the person with no degree but a higher skill level will have an even greater advantage.
Therefore, the quality of your skill will determine the ease with which you can find work or get hired.
This goes to show that having a degree will not always be the advantage that you think it is.
No Guarantees
A music degree offers no guarantees that you’ll actually see success.
Other fields have a wider range of options when it comes to employment, therefore solely relying on a music degree may not be the best thing for you.
The fact is, a lot of people get into the music industry and succeed without ever attaining a degree.
While the most qualified music degree holders may find it hard to actually make a living out of their craft.
This is why, pursuing music fully should only be undertaken by people that have the passion for it because it is not for somebody that is simply looking for a way to survive.
Many areas of work don’t require a degree
A music degree will cost you a lot of money to actually acquire and the sad thing you’ll realize is that;
this is an industry you can break into without having a degree.
Being a musician is practical and is something that requires expertise, vast experience and exposure.
These attributes are learned on the job and not necessarily in a music school.
You can still thrive as good as somebody with a degree,
therefore spending money to get a music degree should really be contemplated and only undertaken by somebody that can actually afford to.
You have to stand out
In any industry, standing out offers the opportunity to get noticed and eventually get hired.
Therefore simply having a degree in music won’t cut it, you’ll have to show just how valuable you are.
This is a situation that calls for the quality of ones musical abilities. Somebody with poor musical abilities will find it hard to stand out and get hired in this industry.
Therefore a degree is a great way of showing your certification but it won’t do much for you if you can’t express and show how much of a well rounded musician you actually are.
