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Studies & Degrees in Music Industry Management

Music industry management, also called music business, is the study of how music is turned into a commercial activity: how recordings are financed, released and promoted, how concerts and tours are organised, how artists are managed and how songwriters and performers are paid. The University of New Haven sums up its degree as business and legal concepts applied to music. The University of Miami describes the sector as one in which streaming and short-form video platforms are constantly changing the rules.

A typical programme combines three areas. The first is general business: marketing, finance, entrepreneurship and management. The second is specific to music: artist management, record company operations, music publishing, copyright and royalties, live events and touring. The third, at many schools, is music itself. London Metropolitan University, for example, includes core modules in Artist Management and in Artist and Repertoire (A&R), and covers music publishing and copyright in the digital age; New Haven adds courses in music theory, performance and recording to its business courses.

Qualifications and levels

  • Bachelor's degree. In the United States the degree takes four years and carries different names. The University of Miami offers both a Bachelor of Music in Music Industry, which requires an audition, and a Bachelor of Arts in Music Industry, which does not require the student to be a musician. The University of Colorado Denver awards a Bachelor of Science in Music with a Music Business emphasis, with an audition track and a non-audition track. The University of New Haven awards a B.A. in Music Industry.
  • United Kingdom. London Metropolitan University teaches a Music Business BA (Hons). Students organise a live event and work with clients from the music industry, and an optional placement of at least 44 weeks of full-time work makes it a four-year programme.
  • Master's degree. Miami's Master of Arts in Music Industry is open to non-musicians. Students on an F-1 student visa choose a 16-month or 21-month plan of study on campus; the online version typically takes 18 months.
  • Combined degrees. Miami pairs the master's with a law degree (Juris Doctor), and New Haven has a dual degree that leads to the B.A. in Music Industry and an MBA.
  • Minors and short courses. Several universities offer a minor in music industry for students of other subjects. Miami also runs a three-week pre-college summer programme, The Business of Music.

Practical experience is a standard part of these degrees. At New Haven every student on the Nashville Study Away programme, a semester spent in Nashville, Tennessee, completes an internship at a music company.

Admission

The main question is whether the programme requires musical training. Degrees housed in a music school may ask for an audition, as Miami's Bachelor of Music does; degrees with a business focus usually do not. International applicants also need to show their level of English. London Metropolitan University asks for a minimum of grades CCC in three A levels or 96 UCAS points from an equivalent qualification, and notes that students who need a Student visa may have to provide a Secure English Language Test such as Academic IELTS.

Where to study music industry management

SpainExchange lists 11 active schools for this subject: nine in the United States, one in Canada and one in the United Kingdom. Teaching is in English. Examples are the University of Miami in Florida, the University of New Haven in Connecticut, the University of Colorado Denver and London Metropolitan University.

When comparing programmes it helps to look at:

  • whether an audition or musical training is required
  • which faculty teaches the degree (music, business or arts and media) and how much of the curriculum is business
  • internships, placement years or a semester in a music centre such as Nashville
  • the city: access to record labels, venues, publishers and festivals matters for work experience

Careers

Graduates work on the business side of music. The University of New Haven lists record company operations, touring and concert promotion, artist management, digital marketing, music supervision and music publishing. London Metropolitan University mentions digital streaming, artist management and merchandising among the sectors its course covers. Many graduates start in assistant or coordinator roles, and some set up their own label, management company or events business.

There are no official employment statistics for music industry managers as a single occupation. For the wider group of entertainment and sports occupations in the United States, the Bureau of Labor Statistics projects employment growth about as fast as the average for all occupations from 2025 to 2035. For market data, the recording industry federation IFPI publishes a Global Music Report each year; the current edition covers 2025.

Frequently asked questions

Do I need to be a musician to study music industry management?

Not always. At the University of Miami the Bachelor of Music in Music Industry requires an audition, but the Bachelor of Arts and the Master of Arts in Music Industry do not require the student to be a musician.

How long does a degree in music business take?

A bachelor's degree in the United States typically takes four years. At London Metropolitan University the BA becomes a four-year programme with the optional placement year. Miami's on-campus master's takes 16 or 21 months for students on an F-1 visa.

What is the difference between music industry and music business degrees?

The names are used for the same field. Miami and New Haven call the degree Music Industry, while London Metropolitan University and the University of Colorado Denver use Music Business.