Whether you’re just starting to think about college for the first time or considering going back to more education, deciding what to study is one of the decisions you need to make first. Your area of study will determine what school you go to, as well as what career options you have when you’re done. Music is a field that not many people think about, but there are plenty of reasons to pursue a music degree, even as a minor. Here are just a few of them.
1. It Lets You Be Creative
For a lot of people, heading into a field like finance or medicine is a terrifying thought, because they want a career that will let them express their creativity. Music is one of the best ways of being creative, and nearly every music-related career you can think of will involve artistic creativity to some extent.
2. It Has a Variety of Career Opportunities
While at first glance, music seems like a field for those who want to be opera singers or pop stars, there are plenty of other options. You could do music therapy, be a full-time music minister at a church, or get a master’s of music education to teach music to other students.
3. It Improves Your Analysis Skills
One of the most important skills involved with music is learning to analyze it, much the same way that literature majors study great books. Learning to think critically about a piece of music pushes your brain to think critically about other things as well and develop intelligent opinions about them.
4. It Makes You More Confident
If you find yourself getting nervous taking tests or standing in front of people, you may think, “I could never study music.” Studies show, however, that music students have less test anxiety and performance anxiety than non-music students. Facing that fear through participating in a music program helps you conquer it, improving your life overall.
5. It’s Easy to Combine With Other Careers
Even if you don’t want to devote your whole life to music, taking music classes or adding a music minor could be a huge plus. A knowledge of music can help you succeed in creating music software, putting together marketing campaigns, or working with patients in a nursing home.
Music is a much better choice than people realize when considering their college education. If this sounds like a field of study you’re interested in, start looking online for music schools that would be good for you.