What would be a good major?

R

RyanTrapstar

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would multimedia be a good major?

if so why? & what GOOD majors would you reccomend to someone who likes mixing, mastering, producing,
 
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Do something with good job prospects. Business is always a safe option... Not sure about multimedia.

Research it.
 
engineer - mix, recording, mastering, broadcast
composer - pop, theater, film, tv, etc
arranger
orchestrator
sound designer - for existing synths, for theater, for cinema, for games

as for multi-media as a major it is a good one as you gain skills in both audio and video including animation
 
RyanTrapstar said:
I heard they say do what you like. So what job that is GOOD would you recommend to a person who loves music
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If you want to live your dream, break it down in to achievable steps.

1. Do a degree which relates to a "Plan B" job you'd love doing and one which is achievable - one which may tie in with music.

I.e. I'm going in to marketing. I've set up my own music marketing blog to start off, but aim to work as marketing assistants for other companies in the future. Some day be a marketing executive - maybe in the music industry. It's still a big ask (to become an executive) but more "realistic" than a producer earning the same money as an executive a year. Maybe I won't need to find myself a "real" job and my blog takes off which earns me a healthy living.

I've got little side projects: record label, and a few other business ideas I'm working on for the future. They may take off, they may fail. It's a great learning experience either way. Even if you fail at anything you're trying to do, you don't really fail as you learn so much. I think this blog post I wrote may be a helpful read for the failure department: Why You Attitude Stinks

2. Get an internship at a record label with artists that interest you. Even if it's just making coffee and filing.

Befriend the artists, don't plug your music. I've had friends come up to me in the past asking if they can just sit in on a session. As long as you don't fart, sneeze or cough, I don't think anyone would have a problem with it once they know you a bit better.

Experience on your CV is more valuable than the degree nowadays (certainly in the UK anyway).

3. When you see an opportunity, grab it. If you are under qualified, still go for it. I know people who have got lucky just off something little they've said in an email.

4. No matter what, always be and look professional. It seems like Americans were brought up well mannered so it may not be an issue... In the UK, I don't think many have been. Make sure to shake hands when you first meet people. Be friendly, be polite, be helpful. This is more of a life lesson than anything. Many people appreciate it. From experience, a lot of people remember me for it.

5. Also, I've learnt not to just think you'll like something because you enjoy the broader subject.

By this I mean, since I was a child I wanted to go in to automotive design. I wanted to design cars. Since I was 5, I've been creating drawings and whatever for my OWN brand of cars.

I got to my GCSEs when I was 14... I didn't want to do art, I didn't enjoy it's restrictions (I was naive, I needed to learn the basics), so that took car design away from my options.

When I got to A levels (at 16), I chose to go the automotive engineering route. Around this time I started making music, and I considered going the music route. But not knowing how to play an instrument, and knowing the job prospects were pretty dire, I didn't bother... I had 4 subjects, Chemistry, Physics, Maths & Business. After 2 months, I hated it. After 6 months I dropped everything but Business, and started my A levels again. I decided I was a creative person and a business minded person. Like I said earlier, I always wanted my own brand of cars. I was entrepreneurial. So I decided to aim to do a Business degree.

I studied English Lit & Lang, Psychology, ICT, Business, and a thing called Welsh Bac between the ages of 17 and 19 for my A levels. I'm now studying Business Management at a top 30 UK University (out of about 140 Universities...).

6. From a degrees job perspective, I think anything that relies heavily on art is an insecure market. Graphic design for example, can be very good money BUT it's volatile, it's opinionated.

Just imagine how many artists will come up to you asking you to do things for cheap/free. It would p*ss you off. However, in the long term, being able to create your own artwork and logos, etc. maybe very beneficial to you as a producer, composer, or artist. Same applies to video/film production...

Big post I know, sorry. Hope I've helped. Remember that you're probably young and you WILL make mistakes. It's probably the hardest point in your life... Think about it carefully, make up your own mind on things. Research things. No one can honestly give YOU a good answer as no one but YOU is YOU.

Cheers,
Jordan
 
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depends on where you see the future of radio ~ it has been transformed at least twice in my lifetime and is likely to be transformed again

most radio where I am is old angry guys complaining about the government of the day and about radical religions, whatever caste they may be, not about broadcasting old and new music music as it once was when i was much younger

a radio major will teach you how to handle a console, how to produce prepared broadcasts, how to produce commercials, how to present a show, it won't teach you about music production, although radio stations still need music producers if only to provide jingles for local advertisers
 
my school actually dropped our radio classes.... i think it's slowly dying out with all the options people have these days..
 
RyanTrapstar said:
if so why? & what GOOD majors would you reccomend to someone who likes mixing, mastering, producing,
Click to expand...

I'm friends with some guys in my area that do a comparable education, and from them I've learned the following: they actually learn very little.

A friend of mine is in his second year of a music production program, and if I'm completely honest, his music is crap. (with crap I mean, very thin sounds, bad mixes, the same chord progressions over and over, it just doesnt sound good)

I've also spoken to some people that have done a producing program that are now "big" in the industry. They made some great connections with people in their school, they put in work and passion, and excelled at their craft.

I wouldn't major in music for job perspective unless you could go into teaching or become an engineer in a studio. However, if you want to do it to improve your craft, make good connections, and put in a lot of work yourself, you could go into a production major.

To whether multimedia is a good major, I don't have personal experience with it, but it seems very wide. I'd go for a more narrow major, to be able to really excel in one field.
 
Internet radio yes. "Offline" radios are dying. Well they will still be around for maybe 10-15 years though.
 
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