20 Best Music Production & Audio Engineering Schools – 2025
April 14, 2025
Whether you’re a future music producer or a budding audio engineer, you’re sure to level up your skills at an audio engineering school. To be sure, there’s a great deal of overlap between the two areas. Both producers and engineers aim to make high-quality recordings in modern professional production environments. Similarly, both music producers and audio engineers need to know about recording session set up and microphone placement, large-format console signal flow, mix-down, mastering, and professional studio protocol. In other words, both producers and engineers learn to use the same recording technology — the difference is what they do with those technical skills.
Want to study music production or audio engineering? In today’s blog, we’re diving into the best schools for audio engineering and music production.
What’s the difference between music production and audio engineering?
Though both future engineers and producers will benefit from a program at an audio engineering school, audio engineers have much broader career prospects. After all, audio engineers can work with any project that requires recording sounds. In other words, while some audio engineers work with musicians, just as many (if not more) work in TV, video games, podcasting, live events, and film. Some of these role are visible, some are not. While you’ve likely seen audio engineers doing live sound mixing at concerts, musicals, or plays, you don’t see the audio engineers who balance the orchestral swells in Skyrim or make Joe Rogan’s pablum sound crisp and clear. Because sound engineers have mastered every aspect of recording technology, they can work in any number of fields.
On the other hand, music production is a much smaller niche. While music producers need to have some familiarity with the technological side of audio recording, their focus is more on the creative aspect of music production. Music producers work with musicians directly to coordinate all aspects of a recording (whether a single song or entire album). Depending on their expertise, music producers might select studio musicians and instruments, provide feedback on arrangements and vocals — they might even compose the songs.
If a music producer is like the director of a film, the audio engineer is like the cinematographer. The latter is working to manifest the creative vision of the former.
Do I need to go to college for audio engineering or musical production?
Do you absolutely have to attend an audio engineering school in order to become a music producer or audio engineer? No. Ultimately, your skills and your portfolio are going to get you jobs, regardless of degree. With this in mind, you could certainly pursue audio engineering and/or music production outside of the traditional education system. If this is the path you want to pursue, look for apprenticeships, internships, and self-directed study opportunities that get you the skills and experience you need.
That being said, there are many educational paths you can take to become a music producer or audio engineer. To be sure, you can certainly pursue a traditional 4-year bachelor’s degree in music production and/or audio engineering (many of the schools below offer just this sort of degree). At the same time, you might be better served getting a 2-year associate degree. On the other hand, if you’re already working and you just want to keep your skills up-to-date, you might consider a certification program.
How do I choose a school?
There are plenty of schools that offer degrees, certificates, and programs of various kinds in music production and audio engineering. But how do you choose which one is the best for you? As with any degree, it’s crucial to think about a few factors:
- Tuition
- Available financial aid
- Time required
- Location
- Courses offered
- Job preparation and training
- Internship connections
- Current professors and their interests
With those factors in mind, we’ve compiled a list of some of the best audio engineering and music production schools as well as crucial details about each. That being said, every student is going to need something different from a program, so use this list as a jumping off point for further research.
Best Schools for Music Production and Audio Engineering
1) Berklee College of Music
- Location: Boston, MA
- Tuition: $26,220 per semester
At Berklee’s College of Music Production and Engineering Department, you can get your Bachelor of Music in Independent Recording and Production or Bachelor of Music in Music Production and Engineering in their renowned four-year programs. You can also minor in Recording and Production for Musicians, Audio Post-Production, or Commercial Record Production. Their faculty have worked with everyone from P!nk and Weezer to Sting and the Notorious B.I.G.
2) Carnegie Mellon University
- Location: Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
- Tuition: $67,020 per year
The Music and Technology program at Carnegie Mellon offers both a Bachelor of Science in Music and Technology and a Master of Science in Music and Technology. Both degree programs are interdisciplinary, with classes spanning the CMU’s School of Music, Computer Science, and Electrical and Computer Engineering. Students are able to focus on a chosen area of study, such as recording technology, audio engineering, computer music, music composition, music performance, and music theory.
3) Montgomery County Community College
- Location: Pottsetown, Pennsylvania
- Tuition: $166 (in-county) / $332 (PA resident) / $498 (out-of-state)
If you’ve got money to burn (or a high tolerance for debt), you can go to any of the private audio engineering schools on this list. However, for those who want to learn audio engineering or music production without breaking the bank, many community colleges have amazing programs that will teach you the basics for a fraction of the cost. Montgomery County Community College is just one example. Here, students will learn to use professional sound recording techniques and tools to record, engineer, and edit music productions as well as conceive, plan, write, record, and edit pieces, projects, and production packages.
4) Full Sail University
- Location: Winter Park, Florida
- Tuition: $86,000 (total)
Full Sail University offers a Music Production Bachelor of Science, a Recording Arts Bachelor of Science, and an Audio Arts Undergraduate certificate. Music production majors will study songwriting, music arrangement as well as recording principles and software. Students studying recording arts will focus on the technological aspects, learning audio mixing, vocal production, postproduction, and how to use specialized recording software.
5) Johns Hopkins University (Peabody)
- Location: Baltimore, Maryland
- Tuition: $64,730 per year
Students at Johns Hopkins’ Peabody Institute can pursue either a bachelor’s or master’s degree in recording arts and sciences. The undergraduate degree is a five-year, double-major degree program that combines an applied performance or composition major with studies in recording engineering. In addition to music courses, students will take classes in electrical engineering, math, science, and computer science at the Whiting School of Engineering. The graduate degree blends coursework in audio engineering and acoustics with practical training through live and studio recordings of classical chamber and large ensembles, large and small jazz ensembles, as well as studio sessions with rock bands.
6) New York University (Steinhardt)
- Location: New York, New York
- Tuition: $65,622 per year
NYU’s Steinhardt School offers four degree options for students interested in studying music technology — a standard bachelor’s degree, a five-year, combined bachelor’s/master’s, a two-year master’s, and, (if you just love school) a PhD. At the undergraduate level, you’ll take classes in music history, music theory, aural comprehension, keyboard harmony, and improvisation. You will also take courses like recording technology, audio for video, and electronic technology. At the graduate level, you’ll pursue research and advanced skills in areas including sound recording, recorded music, music production, live sound, electronic music, signal processing, immersive audio, XR (AR/VR) systems, music cognition, music informatics, machine learning, and more.
7) American University
- Location: Washington, D.C.
- Tuition: $57,952 per year
Students in American University’s audio technology department have a range of degree options. American offers a BA in Audio Production, a BS and MA in Audio Technology, as well as a graduate certificate in audio production. Core courses include sound synthesis, audio production, digital audio workstations, electronics, and physics.
8) Drexel University
- Location: Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
- Tuition: $57,952 per year
Drexel University offers a bachelor of science degree in recording and music production (RAMP) through the Music Industry program. RAMP students focus on the creative and technological disciplines within the music industry. Courses include music recording and production, arranging and composition, audio post-production, mixing, and mastering. Students may opt to take electives like Analog Recording, EDM, Synthesis & Sampling, Video Game Music and Sound, Commercial Music Production, and more.
9) Point Blank Music School
- Location: Los Angeles, California / London, England
- Tuition: $19,245 (one-year diploma) / $754-$1,495 per course
Leaning heavily into their association with famous alum Pete Tong, Point Blank Music School offers a host of degrees, certificates, and diplomas. (Bachelor and associate degree programs start in October 2025.) Students can take classes a la carte or as part of a diploma or certificate program. At this audio engineering school, students will take classes in sound design, composing for film and TV, vocal production, remixing, and mastering (on a 32-channel SSL Origin console).
10) ICON Collective
- Location: Los Angeles, California
- Tuition: $27,555 (one-year program)
Because ICON isn’t a traditional college or university, students can jump directly into audio production classes without having to take any prerequisites. ICON offers a one-year music production program that covers recording technology, music theory, production techniques, and songwriting. What’s more, ICON’s proximity to LA’s music scene makes it an ideal place to develop your music production skills.
11) Musicians Institute College of Contemporary Music
- Location: Los Angeles, California
- Tuition: $27,555 (one-year program)
Musicians Institute offers two options for students interested in music production and recording — a certificate or an associate of science degree. Both offer the chance to explore the components, techniques, and roles involved in professional audio recording and production. With a focus on music, students learn to use industry-relevant recording equipment in multiple studio and production spaces and scenarios to track, edit, mix, master, and produce.
12) The Los Angeles Recording School
- Location: Los Angeles, California
- Tuition: $7,750-$10,750 per semester
Another for-profit audio engineering school, the Los Angeles Recording School offers a host of very expensive options to students interested in audio or music production. This school offers a bachelor’s and associate’s degree in audio production as well as an Associate of Science in Music Production. Students studying audio production will develop their skills in audio engineering, music production, post-production, event production, and visual media, including video editing, graphic and web design skills.
13) Elmhurst University
- Location: Elmhurst, Illinois
- Tuition: $43,983 per year
The Elmhurst Bachelor of Music in Music Production aims to give students “an understanding and mastery of the digital audio workstation, the ability to create and arrange music of different genres, the ability to comprehend and craft music in its various forms for multiple uses in audio production, video production, live performance, and commercial music production are all essential in this field.” With this goal in mind, students take courses in music theory, music history, orchestration, audio engineering, and sound design.
14) Indiana University Southeast
- Location: New Albany, Indiana
- Tuition: $8,577 (residents) / $22,964 (non-residents)
Indiana University Southeast offers a Bachelor of Science in Music with a concentration in audio production or sound engineering. As a traditional four-year bachelor’s degree, students will take everything from Music Theory to The Literature of Music. What’s more, this degree, unlike vocational approaches to music technology, provides a significant background in the academic areas of a traditional music degree. Students participate in ensembles, study two years of music theory, refine their aural skills, and show competency in the performance of music, as well as elements of audio production and fluency in current technologies.
15) The New School
- Location: New York, New York
- Tuition: $30,120 per semester
The New School’s Contemporary Music Program offers an audio production minor through the College of Performing Arts. Students should expect to take courses in audio production, tracking, mixing, and mastering, as well as producing live sound. It also boasts connections to New York City and noteworthy alumni.
16) Columbia College Chicago
- Location: Chicago, Illinois
- Tuition: $15,367 per semester
At Columbia College Chicago, students can pursue bachelor’s degrees in audio arts, music production, music technology, or sound design for media and stage. All of these programs will help you develop the skills and make connections to pursue careers in sound engineering, live and recorded music production, music composition, sound design, and audio system installation.
17) University of Washington
- Location: Seattle, Washington
- Tuition: $6,285
This certificate program is for students who may want to dip their toes into audio engineering without committing to a diploma or four-year degree. Students at the University of Washington will study the basics of editing, mixing, storage media, and the mastering process. In addition, this program includes modules on acoustics, microphones, and analog and digital recording. Students will leave this program with a solid understanding of the physics and terminology of sound, elements of sound production, including signal processing, MIDI, and synchronization, as well as techniques for multi-track recording and overdubs.
18) Blackbird Academy
- Location: Nashville, Tennessee
- Tuition: $23,100 (6-month program)
Another non-traditional, non-degree program, the Blackbird Academy is housed in the famous Blackbird Studio. Started in 2013 by country artist Martina McBride, Blackbird Academy offers a mentor-driven, experience-based education. Here, students will focus on pre-production, recording live musicians, overdubbing, and mixing.
19) The SAE Institute
- Location: Worldwide
- Tuition: Varies
SAE offers audio production and engineering courses and degrees all over the world. Programs, degrees, and pricing vary according to country, so students need to consult their local SAE institute for more information.
20) Shoreline Community College
- Location: Shoreline, Washington
- Tuition: $1,387 (resident) / $2,487 (non-resident) / $3,408 (non-citizen)
Shoreline Community College offers a bevy of degrees and certificates at a fraction of the price of larger audio engineering schools. Students can get an associate’s degree in engineering production or electronic music production as well as certificates in digital audio, multi-track recording, and music theory.
Final Thoughts
Lastly, if music production and audio engineering aren’t necessarily your thing, check out our list of the best colleges and universities for all kinds of music degrees or How to Get Accepted Into A College of Music. You may also find our AP Music Theory Score Calculator to be of use or our list of the 17 Best Performing Arts High Schools in the US to be of interest. Additionally, you may find the following schools with top music programs to be of interest:
