The degree, offered through the Delta Music Institute (DMI) within the College of Arts and Sciences, will meet the important educational needs of students seeking to develop careers in audio production, live event production/management, commercial music, and independent music ventures through an entrepreneurial approach to the music industry. This comprehensive undergraduate degree will foster study in sound recording technology, live sound reinforcement, music entrepreneurship, commercial music production, and use and protection of intellectual property. This program will equip students with the necessary skills and knowledge needed to be competitive in the various fields of the music industry. The BS-MIS degree will offer a required core of music industry studies courses with an emphasis in either audio engineering technology or music industry entrepreneurship. Approximately 60 students are currently enrolled in the music industry concentration in two approved and accredited degrees: the Bachelor of Science in Interdisciplinary Studies and the Bachelor of Arts in Music.
“To work successfully in today’s music and entertainment industry requires multiple skill sets as well as the ability to think creatively and act entrepreneurially,” says DMI Director Tricia Walker. “We believe the new BS-MIS program of study will offer students instruction in key areas of the industry in an interactive, project-based learning framework.”
Music Industry majors will be required to complete a comprehensive senior project related to either an audio engineering technology or music industry entrepreneurship concentration and participate in real-world learning opportunities, such as the student led Fighting Okra Records and the Green Room, Delta State’s on-campus student performance venue.
Delta State requested authorization to plan the new degree in February of 2010. Permission was received from the IHL, and a full degree was proposed in December of 2010. Delta State University then notified the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools Commission on Colleges (SACS-COC) seeking approval for the program, which did not constitute a significant or substantive change. According to Dr. Beverly Moon, Delta State Dean of Research, Assessment, and Planning, “Since this program as proposed was built on courses that we were already teaching at Delta State as concentrations in other degree programs, SACS allowed us to file a modified prospectus for this program, which we submitted in March, 2011. We received notice in late June from SACS that the BS-MIS program was approved for Fall 2011 implementation.”
The Delta Music Institute is an independent center of study under the College of Arts & Sciences of Delta State University. The focus of the DMI is to provide students with a broad and thorough education in the technological, creative, and business areas of the music and entertainment industry. For more information, contact the DMI at (662) 846-4579 or dmi.deltastate.edu.
