Careers & Pathways
Choose your own way!
Learn about some of the ways you can work your way through a music major, minor, or just participate in the department. The pathways below represent more typical tracks through the department, but many students discover their own personal tracks as well.
Love being on stage as a performer? This track is for you! Aimed more at students who aspire to careers as performers, whether as a classical soloist, musical theatre and opera, or as a member of an instrumental or vocal performance ensemble. Through private lessons, instrumental or vocal labs, and performance studies classes, you will learn how to be a performer of the highest caliber. This track typically culminates with a senior recital.
Music from around the world your thing? Study the music of a variety of cultures around the world. This is accomplished through ethnomusicology (a blend of music history and anthropology) courses and participating in our many world music ensembles. Students often finish this track with a minor or double major in anthropology or a minor in ethnomusciology.
Love technology? Want to be a recording engineer or producer? Focus on courses in Ableton and Protools in the Departments state-of-the-art recording studio. Take advanced seminars in electronic composition or advanced recording techniques. You can even take private lessons on composing with Ableton! The end result of this path is highly dependent on your interests and could be an original album, composing new electronic works, or recording ensembles on campus.
If your goal is to be a secondary education teacher, this is your path. In addition to general education courses, you will also study a variety of instruments in addition to your own. Courses will be selected to help you receive the pedagogocial skills needed to enter the world of music education. You will work closely with the Department of Education to acheive this goal!
Want to be a composer? With a firm foundation in music theory, students will explore their creative side and learn to work as a professional composer. Through private composition lessons, students will pursue their compositional insterests. This could be film music, pop music, Classical music, or anything in between. Senior projects are large-scale compositions of some variety.
More of a history buff than a performer? Have no fear, this track is for you! Study the history of music in society through the analysis of musical literature. This pathway ultimately concludes with a research paper.