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Expert Advice for Students Considering an Affordable Online Music Degree

Pursuing a career in music can be both exciting and also unpredictable. To help prospective music students make informed decisions and understand what it really takes to succeed, we asked two industry professionals to share their advice and perspectives on choosing an affordable online music bachelor's program and how to build a lifelong career in this industry. 

Music Students Should Focus on the Business Side of the Industry: Advice From an Executive Producer

Bubba Startz

Music Industry Executive Producer

Bubba Startz is a music industry producer, media entrepreneur, and advocate for independent artists. He is the founder of the Midwest Original Music Organization and executive producer of The Scene Projects Media Network, a platform that promotes emerging musicians through podcasts, live events, and digital media. With more than two decades of experience in entertainment, Startz works closely with songwriters, performers, and creators to help them build audiences. He was named "Content Creator of the Year" by the Midwest Country Music Organization in 2024.

What financial investments should students expect when pursuing a career in music?

"Depending on the career path you choose, there will always be additional costs to being in the music industry. Equipment, instruments, software, hardware, and continued education being among the most common and sometimes most expensive post graduate purchases you will make. 

Many institutions offer licenses to software as part of the curriculum and some even provide equipment at little to sometimes no cost to the student. This, however, is not always the case and any music industry professional will tell you that it comes with the territory of the music business to always be investing in yourself. Your knowledge, experience, and equipment will often be what sets you apart from another that is vying for the same position, client, or performance. One piece of advice I can give here is to never be afraid to invest in yourself."

Are there specific types of music programs that tend to offer the best ROI? 

"For my money, the music business programs are always going to have the best ROI. At the end of the day all the performance training in the world will not provide the stable income that most are seeking post graduation. This is one of the hardest industries to navigate, especially in this changing attention economy. 

If you think you will graduate and because you have a degree in Music Performance that the industry is just going to welcome you with open arms, you need to think again. This business is tough and it’s getting even harder. Most people considering a degree in Music are doing so because they are passionate about their art, but passion will only get you so far in this world. Take the time to learn the business and you will set yourself up for great success in the future."

How can students evaluate the quality of an online music degree program at the bachelor's level?

"I think you can judge the quality of a program and the community of the institution by the graduates that have come before you. Find out others who have taken the same path as you are exploring and compare where they are with where you want to be. While there are no guarantees that you will achieve the same status you can project your outcome better by looking at those that have taken the same route. 

The music industry is built on relationships and those often begin in the classroom with other students, professors, and mentors at the institution you will attend. Be conscious of that as you select your program and do your research on the alumni of the programs you are considering."

Is a music degree necessary to succeed in the music industry?

"Be honest with yourself, first and foremost: Are you passionate enough about music to push through the times where you feel like a failure and nothing seems to be working out? It is not an 'if' but a 'when' those feelings will come. 

There will more than likely not be a high profile job with a big salary waiting for you at the end of your schooling. There will be hard work, late nights, struggles, doubt, and fear. But there will also be great joy in creating, performing, and collaborating with others that is completely unmatched by working in other industries. 

Enjoy the process of learning new things and meeting new people throughout your education. Those people will be the community you lean on when times get tough because no one outside of the music community truly understands why we do what we do. We are not pursuing this life because we WANT to, we do it because we HAVE to. A calling has been placed inside of us to create and if you trust in that process you will always see light at the end of a sometimes dark and very long tunnel that is a career in music. That light is worth every bit of darkness for those that endeavor to persevere, so keep going, keep growing, and never stop creating."

How Music Students Can Turn Education Into Opportunity: Networking, Career Paths, and the Long Game in Music

Music Producer at Sonic Zen Studios

Michael Marucci is a freelance music producer with Sonic Zen Studios based in London, Ontario. He works across music production, recording, and live sound while supporting artists and creators navigating today’s evolving music industry. His work reflects a focus on both the creative and business sides of the modern music landscape.

What costs beyond tuition most often surprise online music students?

"Firstly, students often overlook the value of having their own quality workspace. When studying online, just like working online, we have a tendency to settle for any space, a laptop on a couch, a computer in the corner of the living room etc. It's casual, it's cheap, but investing in a dedicated space for yourself will not only produce better results while studying/working, but also establish good habits for your career after you complete your education. This means converting a spare bedroom, re-finishing a space in the basement, acoustic treatment, a fresh coat of paint, some artwork, a nice desk, etc. Invest the money to create a dedicated space that makes you feel focused, inspired, and that you want to spend time in, you'll be there a lot. 

Secondly, the costs associated with peripheral activities are almost always overlooked. One of the biggest parts of any music/entertainment related career is the networking element, and while you are studying online you still want to invest time and energy in building relationships with other students, or professionals in the real world, in fact probably more so because you're studying online and have less day to day interaction with others. 

Live music events, conferences, festivals, are all essential parts of meeting people that you might want to forge personal or working relationships with. Most of these things will have costs associated with them such as tickets, application fees, travel, food & entertainment, etc.

Interpersonal communication and relationship building are essential. People want to work with you because they like you, and you're enjoyable to be around. Your technical skills matter a lot, but being the most talented person in the room doesn't matter if others don't want to be in the room with you."

"While a great deal of our work in music does occur online, it will always be essential to develop good interpersonal skills, and building good habits should start while you're studying."

Are certain types of music degree programs more likely to lead to stable careers?

"The return you see on your education will always come from how much you're putting into it first, regardless of what specific discipline you choose to focus on. 

That being said, music business or education probably yield the most stable long term career opportunities because of the ceiling that they have. 

Performance and production do have the potential for return, but today's modern music industry presents considerably more challenges. The advent of cheap recording technology coupled with the closure of many larger studios, means many artists are producing their own music, and the jobs at facilities that are still able to hire someone on staff are virtually all filled, and will remain so until the business closes down or the person retires. In other words, do not expect that you'll be able to get a job engineering at a studio, or producing music (at least not immediately). 

How can students make the most of their music degree program?

"Be engaged, ask questions, and seek extra information. Ask your teachers if there are any other resources they'd recommend, events you should attend, or any volunteer opportunities. It could be a part time program after class, or assisting your instructor with a personal project. 

Every day you have the choice to do the bare minimum, or push yourself. You're spending money, choose the latter.

Be committed to the long game, you cannot expect things to come together exactly how you envisioned them in your head, and as quickly as you'd hoped. If you're the type of person who wants to graduate and then have a job immediately, there are careers much better suited to that expectation. Also be open to opportunities, things that come a long that require you to say, 'that's not exactly where I thought this was going, but let's see where this goes.'"