MA Music Production

Applicants will be considered for admission if they have achieved an educational level equivalent to an honours degree in a relevant subject such as music production, music technology, audio technology, sound design, sound arts, or a closely related subject. However, we do not exclude candidates who have graduated from other less strongly aligned disciplines. All applicants will be required to submit a portfolio of previous work in the broad area of music production.

This educational level may be demonstrated by:

• Honours degree;
• Possession of equivalent qualifications;
• Prior experiential learning, the outcome of which can be demonstrated to be equivalent to formal qualifications otherwise required;
• Or a combination of formal qualifications and experiential learning which, taken together, can be demonstrated to be equivalent to formal qualifications otherwise required.

APEL - Accreditation of Prior (Experiential) Learning

Applicants who do not meet these course entry requirements may still be considered in exceptional cases. The course team will consider each application that demonstrates additional strengths and alternative evidence. This might, for example, be demonstrated by:

• Related academic or work experience
• The quality of the personal statement
• A strong academic or other professional reference
• OR a combination of these factors

Each application will be considered on its own merit. We cannot guarantee an offer in each case.

For fees and funding information, please see website 

MA Music Production will develop your employability skills for a wide range of music production career paths in areas including:

• Studio engineering
• Live sound engineering
• Song writing
• Music performance
• Composing for media
• Game audio
• Acoustics
• Audio post-production.

With the increasingly freelance nature of employment in the creative industries, this course will also offer you the guidance and confidence to become a freelance professional.

More widely, Careers and Employability at UAL will support you in your journey to becoming an innovator in the creative and cultural sectors through a programme of events, seminars, workshops, online resources and funding opportunities.

Autumn, Term 1

• The Practice of Music Production (40 credits)
  This unit will cover the fundamental tools used in the process of music production. You’ll demonstrate that you have an advanced understanding of core technologies and learn how to apply your knowledge practically, grounding and enhancing your own music production practice through contextual, technical and creative study.
• Critical Perspectives on Music Production (20 credits)
  Through critical group discussion of both historical concepts and current research and practice, you will evaluate your own music production practice in reference to global contemporary debates on the art of record production and the wider creative industries. You’ll also undertake self-directed research in order to create an individual music production practice proposal.

Spring, Term 2

• Collaborative Unit (20 credits)
  In this unit, you will identify, form and develop collaborative working relationships with a range of potential partners - either within the University or externally. You’ll design and deliver a cross-disciplinary project to a bespoke brief, replicating the kinds of collaborative work that music production typically involves.
• Music Industry Practices (40 credits)
  In this unit, you’ll study the music industry by examining its past, present and future, along with the diverse technical, social, cultural and political influences that shape music industry practices. You’ll participate in sessions to develop key skills needed to work within the industry, ranging from business planning, copyright and intellectual property to funding applications and performance rights. You’ll also have the opportunity to prepare for your career beyond the course by working to a set industry brief.

Summer, Term 3

• Final Major Project (60 credits)
  This unit will provide an opportunity for you to demonstrate the development of your own practice and research relating to music production through the completion of a Final Major Project. Working within an extended period of practice-based research, you’ll synthesise the practical, reflective and conceptual developments in your work throughout the course, and also produce an accompanying critical reflection on that practice.

Autumn, Term 4

• Final Major Project (60 credits - continued)