Computer Science vs Music Technology

College Majors
1

So here is my situation: right now I am working full-time trying to pay off debt, and it’s looking like it’s going to be upwards of 2 years before I am debt free and can start seriously considering going to college, because right now financially it is just not an option. The good news is it gives me a while to decide on what I want to do, and I already know where I’m going to go once I can afford it (2 years at a local community college, and then I will transfer to UCM).

I know I have a lot of time, but I’m pretty sure I’ve narrowed it down to 2 majors that are both an option for me here and are things I’d be interested in doing: computer science and music technology. About my music experience, singing has been my main interest since I was about 12, I started getting lessons at 16, and I am still getting lessons now at age 20. I also have been in music ensembles and can read music, know basic theory etc. My voice teacher has told me several times he thinks I’d do very well studying music, and specifically music technology is the major that interests me the most.

I also like computers and am pretty good at math, languages etc. so I’m pretty sure as far as ability I would also do very well in that area. The thing is, I’m only mildly interested in computers, probably mostly due to the fact that I’m good with them and nothing more. I’m much more interested in learning about music and improving my singing.

On one hand, it seems like computers would be the smart way to go, because I’d get more opportunities for higher-paying jobs, and could still most likely pursue singing and music on the side after I graduate (I doubt I’d have a ton of free time or money during college to do so). That’s what other people tell me as well. But I’m not really super interested in making a ton of money doing something I’m kind of apathetic about if I have the option of making a living off of something I really enjoy. From what I can tell music technology is actually pretty good as far as jobs and unemployment rates compared to other fine arts majors (though I’m not 100% sure). I don’t know much about the pay or what types of jobs there are besides studio engineering and producing. I have a general idea but that’s it.

Anyway, I’m not expecting any definitive answers either way (nor do I want them). I’m just hoping to maybe get some more details about these majors and what the pros and cons of each are, preferably from someone who has done one of them (particularly music technology because I’m not finding a ton of information about it).

2

Why don’t you combine them?

Music technology is actually having a moment right now. One of the hot new(ish) commodities on the market is music streaming and curation services - think Spotify, Apple Music, Soundcloud, Microsoft Groove, Amazon’s music service, Pandora, etc. Some of these services use computer science principles (algorithms, machine learning, etc.) to process information about music and try to create playlists of similar music for people to discover new things and expand their library, but the best services use a combination of machine and human intelligence to put together awesome playlists. I read an article about this a few months ago - I can’t find it now - about how Apple Music was scrambling to hire young music heads with an eye for tech/CS who could help them curate more targeted playlists (as opposed to the kind of repetitive, not-well-organized ones Pandora was cranking out at the time).

There’s also, of course, more traditional music technology. That’s not just limited to helping some hit singer record their new album, of course. Music is used as a soundtrack to everything, pretty much - movies, television shows, animation, large live events (music-oriented and otherwise - think event venues that host weddings!), advertising, etc.

Now, am I saying that music technology is a robust field with job opportunities comparable to computer science? No. I actually don’t know what the job outlook looks like in music tech - only that jobs exist in it. I suspect that it’s difficult to break into, much like being a musician or anything in the arts really is, although less so. But the field is there.

However, studying computer science gives you an edge in two ways. One, you may be a more competent music technologist or programmer for a music service; those jobs would probably much prefer (or even require) you to know how to code. When I checked out jobs with iTunes and Spotify just now, for example, they needed far more software developers and designers than they needed people who are proficient with music. But that doesn’t mean that the music won’t be important to the work that you do - they might also prefer to have a programmer who is familiar with music and music tech than one who isn’t.

And two, if the career in music tech doesn’t pan out, CS is (for now) a pretty booming field with lots of opportunities (although it’s difficult to predict whether it will still be such in 4-5 years).