Balancing Music Industry Curricula in Undergraduate Degree Programs: A Course Distribution Survey and Analysis

Institutions offering degrees under the various names of music business, music industry, music management or music merchandising, most often employ some type of interdisciplinary curricular approach. By interdisciplinary, it is implied that studies in additional subject areas beyond so-called music industry topics are included as required coursework to complete a degree program. For two- and four-year degree-granting institutions, coursework in the area of “general studies” is most often also mandated. (The term “general studies” will be used to represent coursework required outside the major to help students develop the requisite breadth of knowledge in various disciplines.) To further diversify the mix of coursework students must complete to graduate from some institutions offering music industry degrees, courses in what will be referred to as the host discipline (music, business, communication, fine arts, et al.), may also be part of the required course load. (The term “host discipline” will be used throughout this article to refer to the academic unit that supports the music industry degree offered.) As a result, the two- or four-year plan of study for many students pursuing music industry degrees may be impacted to greater or lesser degrees by the fact that there are required courses in these three academic areas, and that such coursework may be seen as “competing” for a student’s available units and time