Many scholarships for music production are available directly through a student's college.
A private education in music production available through a school of music can bring an unparalleled learning experience, but many students can be discouraged by the cost of private schools. However, these programs often have the best audio engineering and production equipment available for students planning on working with that equipment on a daily basis during their careers. Scholarship and grant programs for music production students can help defray the costs of private school tuition.
Music Production Education
A music producer's primary role is to coordinate a recording session with musical artist so that a music recording can be created from the tracks recorded during the session. Music production requires a lot of technical knowledge, as producers must be able to manipulate large sound boards to properly mix a recording. College coursework in music production focuses on the technological aspect of music production. Some courses are dedicated entirely to music production software, such as Pro Tools or Ableton Live. Music producers also learn arrange music, conduct recording sessions and are usually proficient in at least one musical instrument.
Private Organizations
Some grant opportunities for students pursuing a music production degree are available through private industry organizations focused on music production and audio engineering. These grants are meant to offset the high cost of an education in music production, due mainly to the high cost of the technology and software needed to record, mix and publish music. One such organization is the Audio Engineering Society. The AES Education Foundation offers grant funding to audio engineering students enrolled in a graduate degree program and are committed to audio engineering as a career. AES Educational Foundation awards range in dollar amount from $4,000 to $5,000 per grant.
College Scholarships
Tuition at private colleges and universities that offer degree programs in music production can reach $40,000 per year or more. Many of these schools offer their own scholarship programs in music production for capable students who may not be able to enroll because of financial need. For example, the McNally Smith College of Music offers the Founder's Scholarship program to its students. A scholarship handed out through this program awards $2,000 per semester, or $1,000 per semester for Minnesota residents, to qualifying students who are enrolled in the college's music production, recording engineer or live sound programs. Students enrolled in the L.A. Music Academy pursuing an education in music production are eligible to apply for the school's Charles T. Aylesbury Scholarship. This scholarship awards a student maintaining at least a 3.2 grade point average a monetary award equal to one full year's tuition; as of 2011, this award granted a student $20,700 per award.
Fraternal Grants
Fraternal organizations dedicated to music students are also a source of scholarships and grants for music production education. For example, members of Sigma Alpha Iota, an international music fraternity, may be eligible for the society's Music Business/Technology Scholarship. This scholarship awards $2,000 per award as of 2011 to students enrolled in a degree program for either music business or music technology. Other music fraternities with collegiate chapters include Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia, Mu Phi Epsilon and Delta Omicron.
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