Brass Instruments

Types of Degrees Brass Instruments Majors Are Getting

The following table lists how many brass instruments graduations there were for each degree level during the last year for which data was available.

Education Level	Number of Grads
Master’s Degree	56
Graduate Certificate	11
Doctor’s Degree	4

What Brass Instruments Majors Need to Know

In an O*NET survey, brass instruments majors were asked to rate what knowledge areas, skills, and abilities were important in their occupations. These answers were weighted on a scale of 1 to 5 with 5 being the most important.

Knowledge Areas for Brass Instruments Majors

According to O*NET survey takers, a major in brass instruments should prepare you for careers in which you will need to be knowledgeable in the following areas:

• Fine Arts - Knowledge of the theory and techniques required to compose, produce, and perform works of music, dance, visual arts, drama, and sculpture.
• English Language - Knowledge of the structure and content of the English language including the meaning and spelling of words, rules of composition, and grammar.
• Education and Training - Knowledge of principles and methods for curriculum and training design, teaching and instruction for individuals and groups, and the measurement of training effects.
• Communications and Media - Knowledge of media production, communication, and dissemination techniques and methods. This includes alternative ways to inform and entertain via written, oral, and visual media.
• Psychology - Knowledge of human behavior and performance; individual differences in ability, personality, and interests; learning and motivation; psychological research methods; and the assessment and treatment of behavioral and affective disorders.

Skills for Brass Instruments Majors

The following list of skills has been highlighted as some of the most essential for careers related to brass instruments:

• Speaking - Talking to others to convey information effectively.
• Active Listening - Giving full attention to what other people are saying, taking time to understand the points being made, asking questions as appropriate, and not interrupting at inappropriate times.
• Reading Comprehension - Understanding written sentences and paragraphs in work related documents.
• Active Learning - Understanding the implications of new information for both current and future problem-solving and decision-making.
• Instructing - Teaching others how to do something.

Abilities for Brass Instruments Majors

Brass Instruments majors often go into careers where the following abilities are vital:

• Oral Expression - The ability to communicate information and ideas in speaking so others will understand.
• Oral Comprehension - The ability to listen to and understand information and ideas presented through spoken words and sentences.
• Speech Clarity - The ability to speak clearly so others can understand you.
• Originality - The ability to come up with unusual or clever ideas about a given topic or situation, or to develop creative ways to solve a problem.
• Near Vision - The ability to see details at close range (within a few feet of the observer).

What Can You Do With a Brass Instruments Major?

Below is a list of occupations associated with brass instruments:

Job Title	Job Growth Rate	Median Salary
Art, Drama, and Music Professors	12.0%	$69,960
Musicians, Instrumental	6.0%	NA

Who Is Getting a Master’s Degree in Brass Instruments?

This major tends to be male dominated. About 64% of recent graduates are men.

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the countrywide level, the racial-ethnic distribution of brass instruments majors is as follows:

Race/Ethnicity	Number of Grads
Asian	2
Black or African American	2
Hispanic or Latino	2
White	35
International Students	13
Other Races/Ethnicities	2

Geographic Diversity

Students from other countries are interested in Brass Instruments, too. About 23.2% of those with this major are international students.

Amount of Education Required for Careers Related to Brass Instruments

Some careers associated with brass instruments require an advanced degree while some may not even require a bachelor’s. In general, the more advanced your degree the more career options will open up to you. However, there is significant time and money that needs to be invested into your education so weigh the pros and cons.

Find out what the typical degree level is for brass instruments careers below.

Education Level	Percentage of Workers
Less than a High School Diploma	0.3%
High School Diploma - or the equivalent (for example, GED)	5.2%
Post-Secondary Certificate - awarded for training completed after high school (for example, in agriculture or natural resources, computer services, personal or culinary services, engineering technologies, healthcare, construction trades, mechanic and repair technologies, or precision production)	0.3%
Some College Courses	3.4%
Associate’s Degree (or other 2-year degree)	0.8%
Bachelor’s Degree	23.6%
Post-Baccalaureate Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Baccalaureate degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees carrying the title of Master.	0.7%
Master’s Degree	38.5%
Post-Master’s Certificate - awarded for completion of an organized program of study; designed for people who have completed a Master’s degree but do not meet the requirements of academic degrees at the doctoral level.	0.9%
Doctoral Degree	23.6%
Post-Doctoral Training	2.3%

Online Brass Instruments Programs

The following table lists the number of programs by degree level, along with how many schools offered online courses in the field.

Degree Level	Colleges Offering Programs	Colleges Offering Online Classes
Certificate (Less Than 1 Year)	0	0
Certificate (1-2 years)	2	0
Certificate (2-4 Years)	5	0
Associate’s Degree	1	0
Bachelor’s Degree	10	0
Post-Baccalaureate	0	0
Master’s Degree	13	0
Post-Master’s	4	0
Doctor’s Degree (Research)	4	0
Doctor’s Degree (Professional Practice)	0	0
Doctor’s Degree (Other)	1	0

Majors Related to Brass Instruments

You may also be interested in one of the following majors related to brass instruments.

Major	Number of Grads
General Music	10,957
Music Performance	7,240
Music Technology	1,763
Music Theory & Composition	1,236
Other Music	1,126
Voice Performance	747
Stringed Instruments	622
Jazz Studies	589
Keyboard Instruments	566
Music Pedagogy	450
Music History	186
Woodwind Instruments	175
Conducting	167
Musicology & Ethnomusicology	148
Percussion Instruments	42
Sound Arts	33

References

*The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students, international students, and students whose race/ethnicity was unknown. This number is then divided by the total number of students at the school to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• College Scorecard
• National Center for Education Statistics
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• Usual Weekly Earnings of Wage and Salary Workers First Quarter 2020

More about our data sources and methodologies.