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Studies & Degrees in Sound Professional

Professional sound, also called audio production or sound engineering, is the craft of capturing, shaping and reproducing sound for an audience. Sound professionals record music and voices in a studio, mix the sound of a concert or a play as it happens, record dialogue on a film set, and edit and mix soundtracks in post-production. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) describes sound engineering technicians, also known as audio engineers or sound mixers, as the people who assemble and operate sound equipment to record, synchronise, mix, edit or reproduce music, voices or sound effects for theatre, video, film, television, podcasts, sporting events and other productions.

Students learn how sound behaves in a room, how microphones, mixing desks and loudspeaker systems work, how to record and edit with digital audio software, and how to plan the sound of a production with a director or a band. Most of the training is practical and takes place in studios, theatres and on location.

Qualifications and levels

There is no single route into the profession. According to the BLS, educational requirements for sound engineering technicians vary from a high school diploma to a college degree, depending on the position.

  • Vocational training in Spain. The official qualification is the Técnico Superior en Sonido para Audiovisuales y Espectáculos, a higher vocational course (FP de grado superior) of 2,000 hours in the professional family Imagen y Sonido. According to TodoFP, the Ministry of Education's vocational training portal, its modules include live sound control, studio recording, adjustment of sound systems, sound post-production and electroacoustics. Holders can continue to a university degree. The same family has an intermediate course, Técnico en Vídeo Disc-Jockey y Sonido.
  • Bachelor's degrees. Some universities teach sound within theatre, music or media. Purdue University in the United States offers a Sound for the Performing Arts BA, aimed at students drawn to sound effects, music, live mixing, audio recording and film scoring.
  • Film school degrees. Sound for film is often taught as one of the disciplines of a film degree. At CINEMA - Escuela de Cinematografía y Medios Audiovisuales in Puebla, Mexico, the Licenciatura en Cinematografía y Medios Audiovisuales lasts eight semesters and covers sound for film alongside directing, screenwriting, cinematography and editing. The school states that the degree has official recognition (RVOE) from Mexico's Secretaría de Educación Pública.
  • Short and online courses. Private schools and distance-learning providers offer shorter courses in recording, mixing or live sound. These lead to the school's own certificate, not to an official degree.

Where to study

SpainExchange lists four active schools for this subject: two in Mexico, one in Spain and one in the United States. The two Mexican schools, CINEMA - Escuela de Cinematografía y Medios Audiovisuales and CINEARTE, are film schools in Puebla. The school in Spain is Formación Universitaria, a distance-learning provider based in Seville that teaches online. The school in the United States is Purdue University in West Lafayette, Indiana.

The Mexican and Spanish schools teach in Spanish and Purdue University teaches in English. In Spain, the official vocational course is also taught at many public and private vocational centres that are not listed here; TodoFP has a search tool for the centres that offer each course.

When comparing schools, look at how many hours are spent in a studio or on real productions, which equipment and software students use, and whether the qualification is official or the school's own.

Careers

TodoFP lists jobs such as head of sound, sound technician, live sound technician, studio recording technician and monitor technician for holders of the Spanish higher qualification, in radio, the recording industry, audiovisual production, live shows and events. Purdue University names video games, live concerts, film and television, live theatre and sporting events as fields for its sound graduates.

The field is small. In the United States, the BLS counted 15,000 sound engineering technicians and 87,600 audio and video technicians in 2025. It projects overall employment of broadcast, sound and video technicians to grow 1 percent from 2025 to 2035, with about 9,800 openings each year. Within that group, employment of audio and video technicians is projected to grow 4 percent and employment of sound engineering technicians to fall 3 percent.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need a university degree to work in sound?

Not necessarily. According to the BLS, requirements for sound engineering technicians range from a high school diploma to a college degree, depending on the position.

What is the official sound qualification in Spain?

The Técnico Superior en Sonido para Audiovisuales y Espectáculos, a higher vocational course of 2,000 hours in the Imagen y Sonido family.

Can I study sound as part of a film degree?

Yes. At CINEMA in Puebla, for example, sound for film is one of the areas of the eight-semester Licenciatura en Cinematografía y Medios Audiovisuales.

In which language are the courses taught?

In the language of the country: Spanish at the listed schools in Mexico and Spain, English at Purdue University.