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Brass Instruments

Types of Degrees Brass Instruments Majors Are Earning

People majoring in Brass Instruments have the option of earning degrees at several award levels.

Award Level	Graduates
Certificate	1
Bachelor’s Degree	49
Master’s Degree	59

What Brass Instruments Majors Need to Know

Coursework for Brass Instruments build a specific mix of knowledge, skills, and abilities — derived from O*NET surveys of workers in occupations that Brass Instruments graduates commonly enter.

Knowledge Areas

This major prepares you for careers needing Brass Instruments emphasizes the following knowledge areas:

• Fine Arts — Importance 4.9 / 5; level 6.5 / 7.
• Education and Training — Importance 4.6 / 5; level 6.0 / 7.
• English Language — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 5.3 / 7.
• Communications and Media — Importance 3.5 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.
• Psychology — Importance 3.3 / 5; level 3.6 / 7.

^{Importance is rated 1–5; level is 1–7. Source: ONET Online — weighted across related occupations.*}

Skills

Skills built by a Brass Instruments program reflects the day-to-day work of related occupations:

• Speaking — Importance 4.6 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Instructing — Importance 4.3 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Learning Strategies — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.2 / 7.
• Active Listening — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.1 / 7.
• Reading Comprehension — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.5 / 7.

Abilities

Innate abilities most relevant to Brass Instruments careers — again drawn from O*NET surveys of related occupations:

• Oral Expression — Importance 4.2 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.
• Written Comprehension — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.9 / 7.
• Written Expression — Importance 4.1 / 5; level 4.7 / 7.
• Oral Comprehension — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 5.0 / 7.
• Speech Clarity — Importance 4.0 / 5; level 4.6 / 7.

Common Job Activities

Day-to-day, Brass Instruments graduates report doing:

Activity	Frequency / Importance
Thinking Creatively	4.8 / 7
Communicating with Supervisors, Peers, or Subordinates	4.7 / 7
Training and Teaching Others	4.6 / 7
Establishing and Maintaining Interpersonal Relationships	4.4 / 7
Coaching and Developing Others	4.4 / 7
Making Decisions and Solving Problems	4.3 / 7
Organizing, Planning, and Prioritizing Work	4.2 / 7
Getting Information	4.0 / 7
Guiding, Directing, and Motivating Subordinates	4.0 / 7
Updating and Using Relevant Knowledge	3.9 / 7

Technology Skills Used on the Job

Most frequently-cited tools used by Brass Instruments professionals:

Tool / Software	Category	In-Demand
Microsoft Office software	Office suite software	—
Email software	Electronic mail software	—
Microsoft Word	Word processing software	—
Microsoft Excel	Spreadsheet software	—
Web browser software	Internet browser software	—
Word processing software	Word processing software	—
Pure Data PD	Music or sound editing software	—
Hypertext markup language HTML	Web platform development software	—
MySQL	Data base management system software	—
Adobe Audition	Music or sound editing software	—
QuarkXPress	Desktop publishing software	—
Pixar RenderMan Studio	Video creation and editing software	—

^{Source: ONET Online technology skills, weighted across related occupations.*}

Sample Job Titles

Real job postings for Brass Instruments graduates include:

• Arts and Crafts Instructor
• Piano Pedagogy Professor
• Assistant Professor
• University Faculty Member
• Piano Professor
• Fine Arts Professor
• Instructor
• Organ Teacher
• Choral Teacher
• Baton Teacher
• Visual Arts Instructor
• Fine Arts Teacher
• Theater Professor
• Scene Design Lecturer
• Digital Arts Instructor

Education Typically Required

Across the occupations open to Brass Instruments graduates, the typical level of education actually held by current workers is distributed as:

Education Level	Share of Workers
Master’s degree	49.3%
Doctoral degree	30.8%
Bachelor’s degree	14.5%
Post-master’s certificate	1.5%
Associate’s degree (or other 2-year)	1.4%
Less than a high school diploma	0.8%
Post-baccalaureate certificate	0.7%
High school diploma or equivalent	0.5%
Some college courses	0.3%
Post-doctoral training	0.1%

^{Source: ONET Online education / training / experience requirements.*}

Who Is Earning a Degree in Brass Instruments?

Gender Distribution

This field skews predominantly male, with men earning 79.8% of Brass Instruments degrees.

Gender	Graduates	Share
Women	22	20.2%
Men	87	79.8%

Racial-Ethnic Diversity

At the national level, the racial-ethnic distribution of Brass Instruments graduates is as follows:

Race / Ethnicity	Graduates	Share
White	69	63.3%
Asian	2	1.8%
Hispanic or Latino	10	9.2%
Black or African American	3	2.8%
Two or More Races	7	6.4%
Race Unknown	2	1.8%
International Students	16	14.7%

^{See minority definition below.}

How Much Do Brass Instruments Graduates Earn?

Federal data tracks median earnings of Brass Instruments graduates 1, 4, and 5 years after completion. Wages typically rise steadily as graduates gain experience and move into mid-career roles.

Years Out	Median Earnings
1 year	$29,248
4 years	$35,586
5 years	$40,828

By year 5 out, median earnings rise to $40,828 — roughly 40% above the 1-year mark.

^{Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard, field-of-study earnings tracker.}

Is a Degree in Brass Instruments Worth It?

On the earnings side, the federal earnings tracker, Brass Instruments graduates earn a median of $35,586 four years after completion — about 6% below the national median for workers with only a high school diploma (~$38,000). On earnings alone, this program does not show an income premium over the baseline; non-financial outcomes (career interests, certification requirements, advancement potential) are typically the stronger argument for fields in this range.

^{ROI estimate compares the program’s 4-yr median earnings against the 2023 BLS CPS median earnings for high-school-only workers. Source: U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard + BLS Current Population Survey.}

Related Programs

You may also be interested in these closely related fields of study:

Program	CIP Code
Music	50.09
Conducting	50.0906
Jazz/Jazz Studies	50.0910
Keyboard Instruments	50.0907
Music History, Literature, and Theory	50.0902
Music Pedagogy	50.0912
Music Performance, General	50.0903
Music Technology	50.0913
Music Theory and Composition	50.0904
Music, General	50.0901
Music, Other	50.0999
Musicology and Ethnomusicology	50.0905

References

The racial-ethnic minorities count is calculated by taking the total number of students and subtracting white students and international students. This number is then divided by the total number of students to obtain the racial-ethnic minorities percentage.

• College Factual
• National Center for Education Statistics (IPEDS)
• O*NET Online
• U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics
• U.S. Department of Education College Scorecard

More about our data sources and methodologies.