Degree Offered
- Master of Arts
Nature of the Program
The music industry is a vibrant, multi-billion dollar global industry, vast in scope and reach, offering a product that is deeply ingrained into the fabric of every country and culture, across social strata, around the world. As such, it offers extensive professional opportunities to those who are trained, knowledgeable, and versed in its systems, methods, and practices.
The Master of Arts Program in Music Business and Industry at the School of Music offers such knowledge and training by providing an engaging, systematic, and rigorous course of study leading to analytical, creative, regulatory, and entrepreneurial understanding and skills necessary to succeed in today’s complex and challenging music industry field.
The program is offered online as a high quality graduate-level distance-learning opportunity. The program will provide all students possessing appropriate interest, qualifications, and ambition, regardless of their geographic location, access to extensive academic training and acquisition of professional skills necessary for building or furthering their careers in music business and industry.
The School of Music also offers a Graduate Certificate in Music Industry.
Admissions for 2025-2026
Admission is selective and competitive. Minimum application materials will include the following:
- a bachelor's degree from an accredited university and a GPA of 3.0 or higher. (The GPA requirement may be waived based on professional experience in the industry, and/or strong academic or professional recommendations.)
- 3 academic and/or professional recommendations
- a resume/curriculum vitae
- a 500-word essay describing student’s professional preferences, goals and aspirations.
Major Code: 3732
Degree Requirements
| Code | Title | Hours |
|---|---|---|
| Minimum Grade in any course: C-. | ||
| Minimum GPA requirement: 2.75. | ||
| Music Industry Foundations Module | 9 | |
| Music Industry Regulations | ||
| Foundations of Recording Industry | ||
| Development of Music Technology | ||
| Music Commerce, Management, and Operations Module | ||
| Required courses: | 12 | |
| Music Product Advancement | ||
| Music Performance Organization and Commerce | ||
| Advanced Recording Industry | ||
| Advanced Music Publishing | ||
| Select two from the following: | 6 | |
| Music in Multimedia | ||
| International Music Industry | ||
| Artist Representation | ||
| Live Music Production | ||
| Industry Project | 3 | |
| Music Industry Project | ||
| Total Hours | 30 | |
Suggested Plan of Study
The required Music Industry Foundations course, MUSC 611, must be taken prior to any of the required and elective Music Commerce, Management, and Operations Module courses can be taken. All of the other elective courses can be taken anytime. MUSC 626 can only be taken in the last semester of the program.
| First Year | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | Summer | Hours |
| MUSC 611 | 3 | MUSC 613 | 3 | Select one of the following: | 3 |
| MUSC 615 | 3 | MUSC 614 | 3 | ||
| Select one of the following: | 3 | ||||
| 6 | 9 | 3 | |||
| Second Year | |||||
| Fall | Hours | Spring | Hours | ||
| Select one of the following: | 3 | MUSC 612 | 3 | ||
| MUSC 626 | 3 | ||||
| Select one of the following: | 3 | ||||
| 6 | 6 | ||||
| Total credit hours: 30 | |||||
Major Learning Outcomes
Music Business and Industry
Students who earn the Master of Arts in Music Business and Industry will develop the following:
- The ability to delineate and analyze current music industry regulations regarding their commercial implications, business opportunities, and appropriate music industry management practices across the industry income streams.
- The knowledge of the historical progress and development of various music business sectors and relevant regulatory frameworks in demonstrating mastery and understanding of the present music business regulations, systems and methods.
- The ability to perform and manage standard and management level music business procedures and processes utilized in the music publishing, recording, and live music industries, including conception and management of various music product development and placement strategies and plans.
- The ability to construct and evaluate budgets and financial projections across the music industry income streams based on the project parameters, and the relevant market level, regulations, indicators and trends.
- The ability to plan and manage music production processes and activities in recording and live music business sectors including scheduling, budgeting, equipment, personnel, union issues, and regulatory requirements.
- The ability to utilize the music industry research and analysis knowledge and skills to make a constructive contribution to the scholarship in the field, and/or to create a proper business opportunity, or to productively manage a music product, so to create new value and generate positive returns on investments.